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CIVIL aO'v^RI^IMENT
'THE Ji'ilTED STATES
JOHXFISKE
lAjS3(„i.:3. I
v^.
r-
^
CIVIL GOVERNMENT
IN THE UNITED STATES
CONSIDERED WITH SOME REFERENCE
TO ITS ORIGINS
BY
JOHN FISKE
NEW EDITION, WITH ADDITIONS
BY
D. S. SANFORD
Tir yip iy nivrtf mfl^ttvayTBt 00fu
nfc, iy vipfftf n A/wp^tpoi x6MtA9t
PlKDAH, O/^mj*. liL
Thou, too, Mil on, O Sliip of Sutel
Sail011,0 Union, Hiaag and gnall . . .
Out hcans, our hopes, ate all wHh ih«.
Onr hearts, nur hap«, our prayers, our tean,
Out laith ttiumphanl o'er our lean,
Anall witbthH, — aieallwithihecl
BOSTON, KEW YORK, AND CHICAGO
HOUGHTON. MIFFLIN AND COMPANV
Xbt aattttUit faff, Cambdbse
\j^ \3 loU. k, I
y/
^•U, Wv^w C. <hUdi^^
COFYRI6HT 189O BY JOHN PISKB.
COPYRIGHT 1904 BY ABBY M. FISKE.
All rights reserved.
NN
The Riverside Press, Cambridge^ Mass., U. S. A.
Electrotyped and Printed by H. O. Houghton & Company.
fi>eDitattok
This little book is dedicated, with the author's best wishes and
sincere regard, to the many hundreds of young friends whom he has
found it so pleasant to meet in years past, and also to those whom
he looks forward to meeting in years to come, in studies and read-
ings upon the rich and fruitful history of our beloved country.
i
PREFACE.
Some time ago, my friends, Messrs. Houghton,
Mifflin & Co., requested me to write a small book on
Civil Government in the United States, which might
be useful as a text-book, and at the same time service-
able and suggestive to the general reader interested
in American history. In preparing the book certain
points have been kept especially in view^ and deserve
some mention here.
It seemed desirable to adopt a historical method of
exposition, not simply describing our political insti-
tutions in their present shape, but pointing out their
origin, indicating some of the processes through which
they have acquired that present shape, and thus keep-
ing before the student's mind the fact that govern-
ment is perpetually undergoing modifications in adapt-
ing itself to new conditions. Inasmuch as such gradual
changes in government do not make themselves, but
are made by men — and made either for better or for
worse — it is obvious that the history of political in-
stitutions has serious lessons to teach us. The stu-
dent should as soon as possible come to understand
that every institution is the outgrowth of experiences.
One probably gets but little benefit from abstract
definitions and axioms concerning the rights of men
and the nature of civil society, such as we often find
J
vi PREFACE.
at the beginning of books on government. Meta-
physical generalizations are well enough in their place,
but to start with such things — as the French philos-
ophers of the eighteenth century were fond of doing —
is to get the cart before the horse. It is better to
have our story first, and thus find out what govern-
ment in its concrete reality has been, and is. Then
we may fiinish up with the metaphysics, or do as I
have done — leave it for somebody else.
I was advised to avoid the extremely systematic,
intrusively symmetrical, style of exposition, which is
sometimes deemed indispensable in a book of this
sort. It was thought that students would be more
likely to become interested in the subject if it were
treated in the same informal manner into which one
naturally falls in giving lectures to young people. I
have endeavoured to bear this in mind without sacri-
ficing that lucidity in the arrangement of topics which
is always the supreme consideration. For many years
I have been in the habit of lecturing on history to col-
lege students in different parts of the United States,
to young ladies in private schools, and occasionally to
the pupils in high and normal schools, and in writing
this little book I have imagined an audience of these
earnest and intelligent young friends gathered before
me.
I was especially advised — by my friend, Mr. James
MacAlister, superintendent of schools in Philadelphia,
for whose judgment I have the highest respect — to
make it a little book, less than three hundred pages
in length, if possible. Teachers and pupils do not
have time enough to deal properly with large treatises.
Brevity, therefore, is golden. A concise manual is
the desideratum, touching lightly upon the various
points, bringing out their relationships distinctly, and
PREFACE. vii
referring to more elaborate treatises, monographs, and
documents, for the use of those who wish to pursue
the study at greater length.
Within limits thus restricted, it will probably seem
strange to some that so much space is given to the
treatment of local institutions, — comprising the gov-
ernments of town, county, and city. It may be ob-
served, by the way, that some persons apparently
conceive of the state also as a ^^ local institution."
In a recent review of Professor Howard's admirable
" Local Constitutional History of the United States,"
we read, ^^ the first volume, which is aU that is yet
published, treats of the development of the township,
hundred, and shire ; the second volume, we suppose,
being designed to treat of the State Constitutions »
The reviewer forgets that there is such a subject as
the ^^ development of the city and local magistracies "
(which is to be the subject of that second volume),
and lets us see that in his apprehension the American
state is an institution of the same order as the town
and county. We can thus readily assent when we
are told that ^^ many youth have grown to manhood
with so little appreciation of the political importance
of the state as to believe it nothing more than a
geographical division." ^ In its historic genesis, the
American state is not an institution of the same order
as the town and county, nor has it as yet become de-
pressed or ^' mediatized " to that degree. The state,
whUe it does not possess such attributes of sovereignty
as were by our Federal Constitution granted to the
United States, does, nevertheless, possess many very
important and essential characteristics of a sovereign
body, as is here pointed out on pages 172-177. The
study of our state governments is inextricably wrapped
1 Young's Government Class Booh, p. iv.
4
• ••
viu PREFACE.
up with the study of our national government, in such
wise that both are parts of one subject, which cannot
be understood unless both parts are studied. Whether
in the course of our country's future development we
shall ever arrive at a stage in which this is not the
case, must be left for future events to determine. But,
if we ever do arrive at such a stage, " American insti-
tutions " will present a very different aspect from those
with which we are now familiar, and which we have
always been accustomed (even, perhaps, without al-
ways imderstanding them) to admire.
The study of local government properly includes
town, county, and city. To this part of the subject
I have devoted about half of my limited space, quite
unheedful of the warning which I find in the preface
of a certain popular text-book, that '^ to learn the
duties of town, city, and county officers, has nothing
whatever to do with the grand and noble subject of
Civil Government," and that ^^ to attempt class drill
on petty town and county offices, would be simply
burlesque of the whole subject." But, suppose one
were to say, with an air of ineffable scorn, that petty
experiments on terrestrial gravitation and radiant
heat, such as can be made with commonplace pendu-
lums and tearkettles, have nothing whatever to do with
the grand and noble subject of Physical Astronomy I
Science would not have got very far on that plan, I
fancy. The truth is, that science, while it is perpetu-
ally dealing with questions of magnitude, and knows
very well what is large and what is small, knows
nothing whatever of any such distinction as that be-
tween things that are ^^ grand " and things that are
" petty." When we try to study things in a scientific
spirit, to learn their modes of genesis and their present
aspects, in order that we may foresee their tendencies,
PREFACE. ix
and make our volitions count for something in mod-
ifying them, there is nothing which we may safely dis-
regard as trivial. This is true of whatever we can
study ; it is eminently true of the history of institu-
tions. Government is not a royal mystery, to be shut
off, like old Deiokes,^ by a sevenfold wall from the
ordinary business of life. Questions of civil govern-
ment are practical business questions, the principles
of which are as often and as forcibly illustrated in a
city council or a county board of supervisors, as in the
House of Representatives at Washington. It is partly
because too many of our citizens fail to realize that
local government is a worthy study, that we find it
making so much trouble for us. The ^' bmnmers "
and ^^ boodlers " do not find the subject beneath their
notice ; the Master who inspires them is wide awake
and — for a creature that divides the hoof — ex-
tremely intelligent.
It is, moreover, the mental training gained through
contact with local government that enables the people
of a community to conduct successfully, through their
representatives, the government of the state and the
nation. And so it makes a great deal of difference
whether the government of a town or county is of one
sort or another. If the average character of our local
governments for the past quarter of a century had
been quite as high as that of the Boston town-meeting
or the Virginia boards of county magistrates, in the
days of Samuel Adams and Patrick Henry, who can
doubt that many an airy demagogue, who, through
session after session, has played his pranks at the nar
tional capital, would long ago have been abruptly re-
called to his native heath, a sadder if not a wiser man?
We cannot expect the nature of the aggregate to be
^ Herodotus, i. 08.
X PREFACE.
much better than the average natures of its units.
One may hear people gravely discussing the difference
between Frenchmen and Englishmen in political effi-
ciency, and resorting to assumed ethnological causes
to explain it, when, very likely, to save their lives
they could not describe the difference between a
French commune and an English parish. To com-
prehend the interesting contrasts between Grambetta
in the Chamber of Deputies, and Gladstone in the
House of Commons, one should begin with a historical
inquiry into the causes, operating through forty gen-
erations, which have frittered away seU-govemment
in the rural districts and small towns of France, tmtil
there is very little left. If things in America ever
come to such a pass that the city council of Cambridge
must ask Congress each year how much money it can
be allowed to spend for municipal purposes, while the
mayor of Cambridge holds his office subject to re-
moval by the President of the United States, we may
safely predict further extensive changes in the char-
acter of the American people and their government.
It was not for nothing that our prof oundest political
thinker, Thomas Jefferson, attached so much impor-
tance to the study of the township.
In determining the order of exposition, I have
placed local government first, beginning with the
township as the simplest unit. It is well to try to
understand what is near and simple, before dealing
with what is remote and complex. In teaching geog-
raphy with maps, it is wise to get the pupil interested
in the streets of his own town, the country roads run-
ning out of it, and the neighbouring hills and streams,
before burdening his attention with the topographical
details of Borrioboola Gha. To study grand generali-
sations about government, before attending to such of
PREFACE, xi
its features as come most directly before us, is to run
the risk of achieving a result like that attained by the
New Hampshire school-boy, who had studied geology
in a text-book, but was not aware that he had ever
set eyes upon an igneous rock.
After the township, naturally comes the county.
The city, as is here shown, is not simply a larger town,
but is much more complex in organization. His-
torically, many cities have been, or still are, equiva-
lent to counties ; and the development of the county
must be studied before we can understand that of the
city. It has been briefly indicated how these forms of
local government grew up in England, and how they
have become variously modified in adapting them-
selves to different social conditions in different paxts
of the United States.
Next in order come the general governments, those
which possess and exert, in one way or another, attri-
butes of sovereignty. First, the various colonial gov-
ernments have been considered, and some features of
their metamorphosis into our modem state govern-
ments have been described. In the course of this
study, our attention is called to the most original and
striking feature of the development of civil govern-
ment upon American soil, — the written constitution,
with the accompanying power of the courts in certain
cases to annul the acts of the legislature. This is not
only the most original feature of our government, but
it is in some respects the most important. Without
the Supreme Court, it is not likely that the Federal
Union could have been held together, since Congress
has now and then passed an act which the people in
some of the states have regarded as unconstitutional
and tyrannical ; and in the absence of a judicial
method of settling such questions, the only available
xii PREFACE.
remedy would have been nullification. I have de-
voted a brief chapter to the origin and development
of written constitutions, and the connection of our
colonial charters therewith.
Lastly, we come to the completed structure, the
Federal Union ; and by this time we have examined
so many points in the general theory of American
government, that our Federal Constitution can be
more concisely described, and (I believe) more
quickly understood, than if we had made it the sub-
ject of the first chapter instead of the last. In con-
clusion, there have been added a few brief hints and
suggestions with reference to our political history.
These remarks have been intentionally limited. It is
no part of the purpose of this book to give an account
of the doings of political parties under the Constitu-
tion. But its study may fitly be supplemented by
that of Professor Alexander Johnston's ^^ History of
American Politics."
This arrangement not only proceeds from the sim-
pier forms of government to the more complex, but
it follows the historical order of development. From
time immemorial, and down into the lowest strata of
savagery that have come within our ken, there have
been clans and tribes ; and, as is here shown, a town-
ship was originally a stationary clan, and a county
was originally a stationary tribe. There were town-
ships and counties (or equivalent forms of organiza-
tion) before there were cities. In like manner there
were townships, counties, and cities long before there
was anything in the world that could properly be
called a state. I have remarked below upon the way
in which English shires coalesced into little states,
and in course of time the English nation was formed
by the union of such little states, which lost their
PREFACE, xiu
statehood (i. e., their functions of sovereignty, though
not their self-government within certain limits) in the
process. Finally, in America, ^e see an enormous
nationality formed by the federation of states which
partially retain their statehood; and some of these
states are themselves of national dimensions, as, for
example, New York, which is nearly equal in area,
quite equal in population, and far superior in wealth,
to Shakespeare's England.
In studying the local institutions of our different
states, I have been greatly helped by the "Johns
Hopkins University Studies in History and Politics,"
of which the eighth annual series is now in course of
publication. In the course of the pages below I have
frequent occasion to acknowledge my indebtedness to
these learned and sometimes profoundly suggestive
monographs ; but I cannot leave the subject without
a special word of gratitude to my friend. Dr. Herbert
Adams, the editor of the series, for the noble work
which he is doing in promoting the study of American
history. ^
It had always seemed to me that the mere existence
of printed questions in text-books proves that the pub-
lishers must have rather a poor opinion of the aver-
age intelligence of teachers ; and it also seemed as if
the practical effect of such questions must often be
to make the exercise of recitation more mechanical
for both teachers and pupils, and to encourage the
besetting sin of " learning by heart." Nevertheless,
there are usually two sides to a case ; and, in deference
to the prevailing custom, for which, no doubt, there
is much to be said, full sets of questions have been
appended to each chapter and section. It seemed de-
sirable that such questions should be prepared by
some one especially familiar with the use of school-
x!v PREFACE.
books ; and for these I Iiave to thank Mr. F. A. Hill,
Head Master of the Cambridge English High School.
I confess that Mr. Hill's questions have considerably
modified my opinion as to the merits of such appara-
tus. They seem to add very materially to the useful-
ness of the book.
It will be observed that there are two sets of these
questions, entirely distinct in character and purpose.
The first set — " Questions on the Text " — is ap-
pended to each section^ so as to be as near the text
as possible. These questions furnish an excellent top-
ical analysis of the text.^ In a certain sense they ask
^ what the book says," but the teacher is advised em-
phatically to discourage any such thing as committing
the text to memory. The tendency to rote-learning
is very strong. I had to contend with it in teaching
history to seniors at Harvard twenty years ago, but
much has since been done to check it through the de-
velopment of the modem German seminary methods.
(For an explanation of these methods, see Dr. Herbert
Adams on " Seminary Libraries and University Ex-
tension," J. H. U. Studies^ V., xi.) With younger
students the tendency is of course stronger. It is
only through much exercise that the mind learns
how to let itself — as Matthew Arnold used to say —
" play freely about the facts."
In order to supply the pupil with some wholesome
exercise of this sort, Mr. Hill has added, at the end
of each chapter^ a set of '^ Suggestive Questions and
Directions." Here he has thoroughly divined the
purpose of the book and done much to further it.
1 '< This," says Mr. HiU, '' wiU please diose who prefer the topical
method, while it does not forbid the easy transf oimation of topics to
questions, which others may demand."
In the table of contents I have made a pretty f nU topical analyna
of the book, which may prove useful for comparison with Mr. Hill's.
PREFACE.
Problems or cases are suggested for the student to
consider, and questions are asked which cannot be
disposed of by a direct appeal to the text. Some-
tunes the questions go quite outside of the text, and
relate to topics concerning «which it provides no in-
formation whatever. This has been done with a pur-
pose. The pupil should learn how to go outside of
the book and gather from scattered sources informa-
tion concerning questions that the book suggests. In
other words, he should begin to learn how to make
researches^ for that is coming to be one of the useful
arts, not merely for scholars, but for men and women
in many sorts of avocations. It is always useful, as
well as ennobling, to be able to trace knowledge to its
sources. Work of this sort involves more or less con-
ference and discussion among classmates, and calls for
active aid from the teacher ; and if the teacher does
not at first feel at home in these methods, practice
will nevertheless bring familiarity, and wiU prove
most wholesome training. For the aid of teachers
and pupils, as well as of the general reader who wishes
to pursue the subject, I have added a bibliographical
note at the end of each chapter, immediately after
Mr. Hill's " Suggestive Questions and Directions."
This particular purpose in my book must be care-
fully Jme in ST It expLs lie omission of
many details which some text-books on the same sub-
ject would be sure to include. To make a manual
complete and self-sufficing is precisely what I have
not intended. The book is designed to be suggestive
and stimulating, to leave the reader with scant in-
formation on some points, to make him (as Mr. Samuel
Weller says) " vish there wos more," and to show him
how to go on by himself. I am well aware that, in
making an experiment in this somewhat new direction.
XVI PREFACE.
nothing is easier than to fall into errors of judgment
I can hardly suppose that this book is free from such
errors ; but if in spite thereof it shall turn out to be
in any way helpful in bringing the knowledge and
use of the German seminary method into our higher
schools, I shall be more than satisfied.
Just here, let me say to young people in all parts
of our country : — If you have not already done
80, it would be well worth while for you to organize a
^ debating society in your town or village, for the dis-
cussion of such historical and practical questions re-
lating to the government of the United States as are
suggested in the course of this book. Once started,
there need be no end of interesting and profitable
subjects for discussion. As a further guide to the
books you need in studying such subjects, use Mr.
W. E. Foster's "References to the Constitution of
the United States," the invaluable pamphlet men-
tioned below on page 277. If you cannot afford to
buy the books, get the public library of your town or
village to buy them; or, perhaps, organize a small
special library for your society or club. Librarians
will naturally feel interested in such a matter, and
will often be able to help with advice. A few hours
every week spent in such wholesome studies cannot
fail to do much toward the political education of the
local community, and thus toward the general im-
provement of the American people. For the ameli-
oration of things will doubtiiess continue to be ef-
fected in the future, as it has been effected in the
past, not by ambitious schemes of sudden and uni-
versal reform (which the sagacious man always sus-
pects, just as he suspects all schemes for returning a
fabulously large interest upon investments), but by
the gradual and cumulative efforts of innumerable in-
PREFACE. XTU
dividuals, each doing something to help or instruct
those to whom his influence extends. He who makes
two clear ideas grow where there was only one hazy
one before, is the true benefactor of his species.
In conclusion, I must express my sincere thanks to
Mr. Thomas Emerson, superintendent of schools in
Newton, for the very kind interest he has shown in
my work, in discussing its plan with me at the outset,
in reading the completed manuscript, and in offering
valuable criticisms.
Cambridge, August 5, 189(X
PREFACE TO THIS EDITION.
Only those who have subjected Mr. Fiske's book to
the test of extended use with classes of varying ability
can fully appreciate its merits as a text-book.
It has the right point of view. A bold pioneer in
the field of elementary text-books, followed by many
imitators, it still stands without a peer in the emphasis
it places upon the organic character of American gov-
ernmental institutions. The realization that these have
life, that they have their roots in the past, that they
are still growing and adjusting themselves to changing
conditions, is of far greater value to the student, young
or old, than any number of dry details about present
forms of government.
It is progressive and interpretative in method. The
student is led by natural and easy stages from the sim-
plest to the highest development and application of
Anglo-Saxon principles of government. Each upward
step extends the horizon ; and the author, with the skill
of the trained guide, is ever opening up new vistas by
xviu PREFACE,
oompariDg objects near and remote. It is this which
makes the book so suggestive, and suggestiveness in a
text-book is of quite inestimable worth.
Moreover, the free use of historical material, both
in showing the origin o£ our own government and in
recalling for purposes of comparison that which is sig-
nificant in the institutions of other peoples, admirably
adapts the book to the scheme of study planned by the
Committee of Seven. It must not be assumed, how-
ever, that the book is not for those who from lack of
time or for any other reason must focus their atten-
tion upon present forms and problems of government.
Upon the next page I have indicated how easily the
book may be used for a brief course in government,
dealing with modem conditions and involLg a mini-
mum of history.
Finally, the story of our government as here given
is admirably told. Surely no argument is needed to
establish the advantage of putting into the hands of
young people a book written by one who has an assured
place among the masters of English style.
When asked to revise the book, my first resolve was
studiously to avoid sacrificing merits which are none
too common in an elementary text-book. Kadical
changes have not been attempted. Scope, plan, and
spirit of the book remain unaltered. Minor inaccura-
cies, the result of changed conditions, have been cor-
rected. Some omissions have been made good. A
fuller treatment of the federal executive departments
and an account of our new island dependencies have
been added. All of these changes are clearly indicated
in the text by the use of brackets inclosing the new
matter. The most distinctive addition to the book is
the substitution of what is virtually a new discussion of
American city government for Section 3 of Chapter Y
PREFACE.
It has been written in the belief that the most vitally
important of all American problems of government
are municipal problems, and that in training for citi-
zenship these are worthy of the first attention. An
attempt has been made within the compass of twenty-
five pages to state clearly the principal defects of
American city government and the remedies which in
the opinion of competent authorities gi^e most promise
of reform.
A BRIEF COUBSE DEALING WITH MODERN CONDITIONS AND
INVOLVING A MINIMUM OF HISTORY.
Chap. I. Taxation.
Chap. 11. See. 1. The New England Township.
Chap. IIL Sec. 2. The Modem County in Massachusetts.
Sec. 3. The Old Virginia County.
Chap. IV. The Local System under which the student lives.
Chap. V. Sec. 1. Direct and Indirect Government.
Sec. 3. Government of Cities in the United States.
Chap. YI. Sec. 3. The State Governments.
Chap. Yin. Sec. 2. The Federal Congress.
Sec. 3. The Federal Executive.
Sec. 4. The Nation and the States.
Sec. 5. The Federal Judiciary.
Sec. 6. Territorial Government.
Sec. 7. Ratification and Amendments.
Sec. 8. A Few Words about Politics.
Thus within a little more than half of the book is
included a direct, logical, and reasonably complete
presentation of American government as it is.
D. S. Sanford.
Brookline, December 5, 1903.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
TAXATION ANB GOVEBNMENT.
PA0B
"Too much taxes" 1,2
What is taxation ? 3
Taxation and eminent domain 4
What is government ? 5
The "ship of state** 5
" The government ** 6
Whatever else it may be, " the government " is the power
which imposes taxes 7
Difference between taxation and robbery .... 8
Sometimes taxation is robberv 9
The study of history is full of practical lessons, and helpful
to those who would be good citizens . . . 9, 10
Perpetual vigilance is the price of liberty ... 11
Questions on the Text 11, 12
Suggestive Questions and Directions . . 12-14
Bibliographical Note 14, 15
CHAPTER n.
the township.
§ 1. The New England Totonship.
The most ancient and simple form of government • • 16
New England settled by church congregations . . ' 16, 17
Policy of the early Massachusetts government as to land
grants 17
xxu CONTENTS.
Smallness of the farms 18
Township and village 18
Social position of the settlers 19
The town-meeting 19
Selectmen ; town-clerk 20
Town-treasurer ; constables ; assessors of taxes and over-
seers of the poor 21
Act of 1647 establishing public schools . . . .22
School committees 22, 23
Field-drivers and pound-keepers ; fence-viewers ; other
townofBcers 23,24
Calling the town-meeting 24
Town, county, and state taxes 25
Poll-tax 26
Taxes on real-estate ; taxes on personal property . . 26
When and where taxes are assessed . . . . 26, 27
Tax-lists . 27
Cheating the government 28
The rate of taxation 28
Undervaluation; the burden of taxation .... 29
The " magic-fund " delusion 30
Educational value of the town-meeting .... 31
By-laws 31
Power and responsibility 32
There is nothing especially American, democratic, or meri-
torious about *' rotation in office '' 32
Questions on the Text . . . - . 32-34
§ 2. Origin of the Township.
Town-meetings in ancient Greece and Rome . . .34
Clans; the mark and the tun 35
The Old-English township, the manor, and the parish 36, 37
The vestry-meeting 37
Parish and vestry clerks; beadles, waywardens, hay wards,
common-drivers, churchwardens, etc 38
Transition from the English parish to the New England
township 38, 39
Building of states out of smaller political units . . 39
Representation; shire-motes; Earl Simon's Parliament . 46
The township as the '' unit of representation '' in the shire-
mote and in the Creneral Court 41
Contrast with the Russian village-community which is not
represented in the general government • . • 42
• ••
CONTENTS. xxiii
QUESTIONB ON THB TeXT 43
sugoestxye questions and directions . . 43-46
Bibliographical Note 46, 47
CHAPTER in.
THE COUNTY.
§ 1. The County in its Beginnings,
Why do we have counties ? 48
Clans and tribes 49
The English nation, like the American, grew out of the
union of small states 49, 50
£aldorman and sheriff; shire-mote and county court 60, 51
The coroner, or " crown ofBcer ** 51, 62
Justices of the peace; the Quarter Sessions; the lord lieu-
tenant 62
Decline of the English coimtj ; beginnings of counties in
Massachusetts 53
Questions on the Text 54
§ 2. The Modem County in Massachusetts,
Coonty commissioners, etc. ; shire-towns and court-houses 55
Justices of the peace, and trial justices . . . • 55, 56
The sheriff 56
Questions V)n the Text 57
§ 3. The ad Virginia County,
Yirginia sparsely settled ; extensive land grants to individ-
uals 57,58
Navigable rivers ; absence of towns ; slavery ... 58
Social position of the settlers 59
Yirginia parishes ; the vestry was a close corporation 59, 60
Powers of the vestry 60
The county was the unit of representation . . . .61
The county court was virtually a close corporation . . 61, 62
The county-seat, or Court House 62
Powers of the court ; the sheriff 63
The county-lieutenant 64
Contrast between old Virginia and old New England, in re-
gpeet of local government 64, 65
XXIV CONTENTS.
Jefferson's opinion of township goyemment • • .65
« Court-day " in old Virginia 65,66
Virginia has been prolific in great leaders . • 66, 67
Questions on the Text 67, 68
Suggestive Questions and Directions . . 68-70
Bibliographical Note 70
CHAPTER IV.
township and county,
§ 1. Various Local Systems,
Parishes in South Carolina • 71
The back country; the ''regulators" .... 72
The district system 72, 73
The modem South Carolina county 73, 74
The counties are too large 74
Tendency of the school district to develop into something
like a township 74
Local institutions in colonial Maryland ; the hundred . . 75
Clans ; brotherhoods, or phratries ; and tribes . 75
Origin of the hundred ; the hundred court ; the high con-
stable 76
Decay of the hundred ; hundred-meeting in Maryland . 77
The hundred in Delaware ; the levy court, or representa-
tive county assembly . . . . *. . . 78
The old Pennsylvania county 78
Town-meetings in New York 79
The county board of supervisors 79, 80
Questions on the Text 80
§ 2. Settlement of the Public Domain.
Westward movement of population along parallels of lati-
tude 81
Method of surveying the public lands . . . 81-83
Origin of townships in the West 83
Formation of counties in the West .... 84, 85.
Some effects of this system 85
The reservation of a section for public schools . . .86
In this reservation there were the germs of township gov-
ernment 87
CONTENTS. XXV
Bat at first the county system prevailed • • • 87, 88
Questions on the Text 88
§ 3. The Representative Toumship'County System in the West.
The town-meeting in Michigan 89
Conflict between township and county systems in Illinois 89, 90
Effects of the Ordinance of 1787 90
Intense vitality of the township system • . . .91
County option and township option in Missouri, Nebraska,
Minnesota, and Dakota 91, 92
Grades of township government in the West . . .92
An excellent result of the absence of centralization in the
United States .93
Effect of the self-governing school district in the South, in
preparing the way for the self-governing township . . 94
Woman-suffrage in the school district .... 94, 95
Questions on the Text 94, 95
Suggestive Questions and Directions . . 95, 96
Bibliographical Note 97
CHAPTER V.
THE CITY.
§ 1. Direct and Indirect Government,
Summary of the foregoing results ; township government
is direct, county government is indirect ... 98
Representative government is necessitated in a county by the
extent of territory, and in a city by the multitude of people 100
Josiah Quincy's account of the Boston town-meeting in
1820 100,101
Government more complex as population increases . 101, 102
City charters obtained from the state legislature . . 102
Distinctions between towns and cities in America and in
England 102, 103
Questions on the Text .... 103, 104
§ 2. Origin of English Boroughs and Cities,
Origin of the chesters and casters in Roman camps . . 104
Coalescence of towns into fortified boroughs . 104, 105
The borough as a hundred ; it acquires a court . . . 105
CONTENTS,
The borough as a connty ; it acquires a sheriff 106
Groyemment of London under Henry I. . . . 105, 106
The guUds ; the town guild, and Guild Hall . 106, 107
Government of London as perfected in the thirteenth cen-
tury; mayor, aldermen, and conunon council . . 107, 108
The city of London, and the metropolitan district . 108
English cities were for a long time the bulwarks of
liberty 108, 109
Simon de Montfort and the cities .... 109, 110
Oligarchical abuses in English cities, beginning with the
Tudor period 110
The Municipal Reform Act of 1835 .... 110
Government of the city of New York before the Revolution 1 10-112
Changes after the Revolution 112
City government in Philadelphia in the eighteenth cen-
tury 112,113
The very tradition of good government was lacking in these
cities 114
QimSTIONS ON THE TeXT 114, 115
§ 3. The Government of Cities in the United States,
Functions of the modern municipality . 115-120
American cities derive authority from state legislature . 120
Organization of American city governments . . 121, 122
American city governments do not work well . . 123
Rapid g^wth of American cities 124
Consequences of rapid growth .... 124, 125
Actual defects of American cities .... 125-127
Causes 127, 128
Root of trouble, " too much politics " 128
Confusion of national, state, and local issues . 128, 129
Divided authority 129, 130
Interference of state legislature .... 131, 132
Comparison of city with business corporation . . 133, 134
Specific reforms proposed 135-137
Two schools of reformers 137, 138
Plan of concentrating power in municipal council . . 138
Plan of concentrating power in hands of mayor . . 138, 139
Duty of individual citizen 140
Questions on the Text 140-142
Suggestive Questions and Directions . 142-144
Bibliographical Note 144, 145
CONTENTS. xxvii
CHAPTER VI.
THE STATE.
§ 1. The Colonial Governments.
Claims of Spain to the possession of North America . . 146
Claims of France and England .... 146, 147
The London and Plymouth Companies .... 147
Their common charter . . . . i . . 148
Dissolution of the two companies 149
States formed in the three zones .... 149-151
Formation of representative governments ; House of Bur-
gesses in Virginia 151, 152
Company of Massachusetts Bay .... 152, 153
Transfer of the charter from England to Massachusetts 153
The Greneral Court ; assistants and deputies . . 153, 154
Virtual independence of Massachusetts, and quarrels with
the Crown 154, 155
New charter of Massachusetts in 1692 ; its liberties cur-
taUed 155
Republican governments in Connecticut and Rhode Island 155
Counties palatine in England ; proprietary charter of Mary-
land 156,157
Proprietary charter of Pennsylvania 158
Quarrels between Penns and Cal verts ; Mason and Dixon's
line 158
Other proprietary governments 158, 159
They generally became unpopular 159
At the time of the Revolution there were three forms of co-
lonial government : 1. Republican ; 2. Proprietary ; 3.
Royal 160
(After 1692 the government of Massachusetts might be de-
scribed as semi-royal) 160
In all three forms there was a representative assembly,
which alone could impose taxes .... 160, 161
The governor's council was a kind of upper house . . 161
The colonial government was much like the English system
in miniature 162
The Americans never admitted the supremacy of parlia-
ment 162, 163
Except in the regulation of maritime commerce . . 163
xxviii CONTENTS.
In England there grew up the theory of the imperial su-
premacy of parliament 163
And the conflict between the British and American theories
was precipitated by becoming involved in the political
schemes of Creorge III. 164
Questions on the Text .... 165-167
§ 2. The Transition from Colonial to State Governments,
Dissolution of assemblies and parliaments . . . 167, 168
Committees of correspondence ; provincial congresses 168, 169
Provisional governments ; " governors " and " presi-
dents" 169,170
Origin of the senates 170
Likenesses and differences between British and American
Systems 171
Questions on the Text 172
§ 3. The State Governments.
Later modifications 173
Universal sufi&age 173
Historical reasons for restriction of suffrage to men . 174
Suffrage rights of women at present time . . .174, 175
Separation between legislative and executive departments ;
its advantages and disadvantages as compared with the
European plan 175, 176
In our system the independence of the executive is of vital
importance 176
The state executive 177
The governor's functions : 1. adviser of legislature ; 2.
commander of state militia ; 3. royal prerogative of
pardon ; 4. veto power 178, 179
Importance of the veto power as a safeguard against cor-
ruption 179
In building the state, the local self-government was left un-
impaired 179, 180
Instructive contrast with France .... 180, 181
Some causes of French political incapacity .... 181
Vastness of the functions retained by the states in the Amer-
ican Union 182-184
Illustration from recent English history . . . 184, 185
Independence of the state courts 185
Constitution of the state courts 185, 186
•
CONTENTS. XXIX
The jury system 186, 187
Elective and appointive judges 187, 188
Questions on the Text .... 189, 190
Suggestive Questions and Dibections . . 190-194
Bibliographical Note 194
CHAPTER VU.
WRITTEN constitutions.
In the American state there is a power above the legis-
lature 195
Grerms of the idea of a written constitution . . . 196
Development of the idea of contract in Roman law ; medi-
seval charters 196, 197
The « Great Charter " (1216) 197
The Bill of Rights (1689) 198
Foreshadowing of the American idea by Sir Harry Vane
(1656) 199, 200
The Mayflower compact (1620) 200
The " Fundamental Orders " of Connecticut (1639) 200, 201
Germinal development of the colonial charter toward the
modem state constitution 201
Abnormal development of some recent state constitutions
encroaching upon the legislature 202
The process of amending constitutions .... 203
The Swiss " Referendum " 204
Questions on the Text 204-206
Suggestive Questions and Directions . 206-207
Bebliografhical Note 208
CHAPTER Vin.
THE FEDERAL UNION.
§ 1. Origin of the Federal Union.
Circumstances favourable to the union of the colonies . 209, 210
The New England Confederacy (1643-84) . . . 210
Albany Congress (1754) ; Stamp Act Congress (1765) ;
committees of correspondence (1772-75) . . . 211
CONTENTS,
The Continental Congress (1774^9) .... 212
The several states were never at any time sovereign states . 213
The Articles of Confederation 213
Nature and powers of the Continental Congress . . 213, 214
It could not impose taxes, and therefore was not fully en-
dowed with sovereignty 214, 215
Decline of the Continental Congress 216
Weakness of the sentiment of union ; anarchical tenden-
cies 216,217
The Federal Convention (1787) 217-219
Questions on the Text .... 219, 220
§ 2. The Federal Congress,
The House of Representatives 220, 221
The three fifths compremise 221
The Connecticut compromise 222
The Senate 223
Electoral districts; the "Gerrymander'' . . .224,225
The election at large 226
Time of assembling . . . . . . 226, 227
Privileges of members 227
The Speaker .228
Impeachment in England; in the United States 229
The president's veto power 230
Questions on the Text .... 231, 232
§ 3. The Federal Executive,
The title of « President " 232
The electoral college 233,234
The Twelfth Amendment 235
The electoral commission (1877) 236
Provisions against a lapse of the presidency . 236, 237
Original purpose of the electoral college not fulfilled 237, 238
Electors formerly chosen in many states by districts ; now
always on a general ticket 238
« Minority presidents " 238,239
Advantages of the electoral system 239
Nomination of candidates by congressional caucus (1800-24) 240
Nominating conventions ; the " primary " ; the district con-
vention ; the national convention .... 240, 241
Qualifications for the presidency ; the term of ofQce 241, 242
Powers and duties of the president .... 242, 243
CONTENTS. xxxi
The president's message 243
Executive departments ; the cabinet . . • . 244
The secretary of state • . 245
Diplomatic and consular service .... 246
The secretary of the treasury 247
War and navy departments, post-office department . . 248
Departments of interior, justice, and agriculture . . . 249
Department of commerce and labor 250
Questions on the Text 250-253
§ 4. The Nation and the States,
Difference between confederation and federal union . 253, 254
Powers gpranted to Congress 254
The " Elastic Clause " 255
Powers denied to the states 255
Evils of an inconvertible paper currency . . . 255, 256
Powers denied to Congress 257
Bills of attainder 257
Intercitizenship ; mode of making amendments . 258
Questions on the Text 259, 260
§ 5. The Federal Judiciary. ^/
Need for a federal judiciary .... ^ / .^ 260
Federal courts and judges 260, 261
District attorneys and marshals 261
The federal jurisdiction . 261,262
Questions on the Text 262
§ 6. Territorial Government.
The Northwest Territory and the Ordinance of 1787 . . 263
Louisiana Purchase 263
Other territories and their governments .* 264
New dependencies . 265
Hawaiian Islands . . . . 265
Cuba, Porto Rico, and the Philippines . 266, 267
New problems of government 267
Beneficent work of United States government . . . 268
Questions on the Text . . . . 268
§ 7. Ratification and Amendments,
Frovisions for ratification 269
Concessions to slavery 269
• •
xxxii CONTENTS.
#
Demand for a bill of rights 269, 270
The first ten amendments 270
Questions on the Text 271
§ 8. ^ Few Words about Politics.
Federal taxation 271
Hamilton's policy ; excise ; tariff .... 271-273
Origin of American political parties ; strict and loose con-
struction of the Elastic Clause 273
Tariff, Internal Improvements, and National Bank . . 274
Civil service reform 275
Origin of the '* spoils system " in the state politics of New
York and Pennsylvania 276
" Rotation in office ; " the Crawford Act .... 276
How the " spoils system " was made national . . . 277
The Civil Service Act of 1883 278
The Australian ballot 279
The English system of accounting for election expenses . 280
Questions on the Text .... 281-283
Suggestive Questions and Directions . . 283-286
Bibliographical Note 286-292
APPENDIX.
A. The Articles of Confederation 293
B. The Constitution of the United States ... 301
C. Magna Charta 322
D. Part of the Bill of Rights, 1689 .... 339
E. The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut . . . 343
F. The States classified according to origin . . 349
G. Table of «tates and territories . . . . . 350
H. Population of the United States 1790-1900, with per-
centages of urban population .... 351
I. An Examination Paper for Customs Clerks . . . 351
J. The New York Corrupt Practices Act of 1890 . 356
K. Specimen of an Australian ballot .... 361
Index 367
CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN THE UNITED STATES,
CONSIDERED WITH SOME REFER-
ENCE TO ITS ORIGINS.
CHAPTER L
TAXATION AND GOYEBNMENT.
In that strangely beautiful story, "The Cloister
and the Hearth," in which Charles Beade has drawn
such a vivid picture of human life at the close of the
Middle Ages, there is a good description of the siege
of a revolted town by the army of the Duke of Bur-
gundy. Arrows whiz, catapults hurl their ponderous
stones, wooden towers are built, secret mines are ex-
ploded. The sturdy citizens, led by a tall knight who
seems to bear a charmed life, baffle every device of
the besiegers. At length the citizens capture the
brother of the duke's general, and the besiegers cap-
ture the tall knight, who turns out to be no knight
after all, but just a plebeian hosier. The duke's gen-
eral is on the point of ordering the tradesman who
has made so much trouble to be shot, but the latter
still remains master of the situation ; for, as he dryly
observes, if any harm comes to him, the enraged citi-
zens will hang the general's brother. Some parley
ensues, in which the shrewd hosier promises for the
townsfolk to set free their prisoner and pay a round
2 TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT,
sum of money if the besieging army will depart and
leave them in peace. The offer is accepted, and so
the matter is amicably settled. As the worthy citizen
is abont to take his leave, the general ventures a word
of inquiry as to the cause of the town's revolt. ^^ What,
then, is your grievance, my good friend?" Our ho-
<'Too mneh ^^^ knight, though deft with needle and
^^^^^^ keen with lance, has a stammering tongue.
Heanswers: "Tuta — tuta — tuta — tuta — too much
taxes ! "
"Too much taxes:'' those three little words fur-
nish us with a clue wherewith to understand and ex*
plain a great deal of history. A great many sieges
of towns, so horrid to have endured though so pictur-
esque to read about, hundreds of weary marches and
deadly battles, thousands of romantic plots that have
led their inventors to the scaffold, have owed their
origin to questions of taxation. The issue between
the ducal conmiander and the warlike tradesman has
been tried over and over again in every country and
in every age, and not always has the oppressor been
so speedily thwarted and got rid of. The questions as
to how much the taxes shall be, and who is to decide
how much they shall be, are always and in every stage
of society questions of most fundamental importance.
And ever since men began to make history, a very
large part of what they have done, in the way of
making history, has been the attempt to settle these
questions, whether by discussion or by blows, whether
In council chambers or on the battlefield. The French
Revolution of 1789, the most terrible political convul-
sion of modem times, was caused chiefly by "too
much taxes," and by the fact that the people who paid
the taxes were not the people who decided what the
taxes were to be. Our own Bevolution, which made
TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT. 8
the United States a nation independent of Great Brit-
ain, was brought on «by the disputed question as to
who was to decide what taxes American citizens must
pay.
What, then, are taxes ? The question is one which
is apt to come up, sooner or later, to puzzle children.
They find no difficulty in understanding the butcher's
bill for so many pounds of meat, or the tailor's bill
for so many suits of clothes, where the value received
is something that can be seen and handled. But the
tax bill, though it comes as inevitably as the Ynat is tax.
autumnal frosts, bears no such obvious rela- ***^^
tion to the incidents of domestic life ; it is not quite
so dear what the money goes for ; and hence it is apt
to be paid by the head of the household with more or
less grumbUng, whUe for the younger members of the
family it requires some explanation.
It only needs to be pointed out, however, that in
every town some things are done for the benefit of all
the inhabitants of the town, things which concern one
person just as much as another. Thus roads are made
and kept ill repair, school-houses are built and salaries
paid to school-teachers, there are constables who take
eriminals to jail, there are engines for putting out
fires, there are public libraries, town cemeteries, and
pooi^houses. Money raised for these purposes, which
are supposed to concern all the inhabitants, is sup-
posed to bie paid by all the inhabitants, each one fur-
nishing his share ; and the share which each one pays
is his town tax.
From this illustration it would appear that taxes
are private properly taken for public purposes ; and
m making this statement we come very near the truth.
Taxes are portions of private property which a gov-
ernment takes for its public purposes. Before going
4 TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT.
farther, let us paase to observe that there is one other
way, besides taxation, in which government
eminent do- sometimes takes private property for pubuc
purposes. Soads and streets are of great
importance to the general public ; and the government
of the town or ciiy in which you live may see fit, in
opening a new street, to run it across your garden, or
to make you move your house or shop out of the way
for it. In so doing, the government either takes away
or damages some of your property. It exercises rights
over your properly without asking your permission.
This power of government over private property is
called ^^ the right of eminent domain." It means that
a man's private interests must not be allowed to ob-
struct the interests of the whole community in which
he lives. But in two ways the exercise of eminent
domain is unlike taxation. In the first place, it is
only occasional, and affects only certain persons here
or there, whereas taxation goes on perpetually and
affects aU persons who own property. In the second
place, when the government takes away a piece of
your land to make a road, it pays you money in
return for it ; perhaps not quite so much as you believe
the piece of land was worth in the market ; the aver-
age human nature is doubtless such that men seldom
give fair measure for measure unless they feel com-
pelled to, and it is not easy to put a government un-
der compulsion. Still it gives you something ; it does
not ask you to part with your property for nothing.
Now in the case of taxation, the government takes
your money and seems to make no return to you indi-
vidually ; but it is supposed to return to you the value
of it in the shape of well-paved streets, good schools,
efiicient protection against criminals, and so forth.
In giving this brief preliminary definition of taxes
TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT. 5
and taxation, we have already begun to speak of ^^ the
government " of the town or city in which you live.
We shall presently have to speaJk of other " govern-
ments," — as the government of your state and the
government of the United States ; and we shall now
and then have occasion to allude to the gov- „, .
° What is
emments of other countries in which the peo- govern-
ment ?
pie are free, as, for example, England ; and
of some countries in which the people are not free, as,
for example, Russia. It is desirable, therefore, that
we should here at the start make sure what we mean
by " government," in order that we may have a clear
idea of what we are talking about.
Our verb " to govern " is an Old French word, one
of the great host of French words which became a
part of the English language between the eleventh
and fourteenth centuries, when so much French was
spoken in England. The French word was gouvemer^
and its oldest form was the Latin guhemare^ a word
which the Eomans borrowed from the Greek, and
meant originally " to steer the ship." Hence it very
naturally came to mean " to guide," " to direct," " to
command." The comparison between governing and
steering was a happy one. To govern is not to com-
mand as a master commands a slave, but it is to issue
orders and give directions for the common good ; for
the interests of the man at the helm are the same as
those of the people in the ship. All must xhe^ship
float or sink together. Hence we sometimes ®' ®***®*
speak of the '^ ship of state," and we often call the
state a ^' commonwealth," or something in the weal or
welfare of which all the people are alike interested.
Government, then, is the directing or managing of
such afiEairs as concern all the people alike, — as, for
example, the punishment of criminals, the enforce-
6 TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT.
ment of contracts, the defence against foreign enemies,
the maintenance of roads and bridges, and so on. To
the directing or managing of such affairs all the peo-
ple are expected to contribute, each according to his
ability, in the shape of taxes. Government is some-
thing which is supported by the people and kept alive
by taxation. There is no other way of keeping it
alive.
The business of carrying on government — of steer-
ing the ship of state — either requires some special
training, or absorbs all the time and attention of
those who carry it on ; and accordingly, in all coun-
tries, certain persons or groups of persons are se-
lected or in some way set apart, for longer or shorter
periods of time, to perform the work of government.
Such persons maybe a king with his council, as in the
England of the twelfth century ; or a parliament led
by a responsible ministry, as in the England of to-day ;
or a president and two houses of congress, as in the
United States ; or a board of selectmen, as in a New
England town. When we speak of " a government "
"The gov- ^^ "the government," we often mean the
Mimient.»' group of pcrsous thus set apart for carrying
on the work of government. Thus, by " the Glad-
stone government " we mean Mr. Gladstone, with his
colleagues in the cabinet and his Liberal majority in
the House of Commons ; and by " the Lincoln gov-
ernment," properly speaking, was meant President
Lincoln, with the Eepublican majorities in the Senate
and House of Representatives.
" The government " has always many things to do,
and there are many different lights in which we might
regard it. But for the present there is one thing
which we need especially to keep in mind. "The
government " is the power which can rightfully take
TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT. 7
away a part of your property, in the shape of taxes,
to be used for public purposes. A goYemment is not
worthy of the name, and cannot long be kept in exist-
ence, unless it can raise money by taxation, whatever
and use force, if necessary, in collecting its ST^^tST^
taxes. The only general government of the ^^S'i.
United States during the Revolutionary War, ^iS'''"
and for six years after its close, was the Con- **'^®^
tinental Congress, which had no authority to raise
money by taxation. In order to feed and clothe the
army and pay its officers and soldiers, it was obliged
to (isk for money from th^ several states, and hardly
ever got as much as was needed. It was obliged to
borrow millions of dollars from France and Holland,
and to issue promissory notes which soon became
worthless. After the war was over it became clear
that this so-called government could neither preserve
order nor pay its debts, and accordingly it ceased to
be respected either at home or abroad, and it became
necessary for the American people to adopt a new
form of government. Between the old Continental
Congress and the government under which we have
lived since 1789, the differences were many ; but by
far the most essential difference was that the new gov-
ernment could raise money by taxation, and was thus
enabled properly to carry on the work of governing.
If we are in any doubt as to what is really the
government of some particular country, we cannot do
better than observe what person or persons in that
country are clothed with authority to tax the people.
Mere names, as customarily applied to governments,
are apt to be deceptive. Thus in the middle of the
eighteenth century France and England were both
cs^ed " kingdoms ; " but so far as kingly power was
concerned, Louis XY. was a very different sort of a
8 TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT.
king from George II. The French king could impose
taxes on his people, and it might therefore be truly
said that the government of France was in the king.
Indeed, it was Louis XY.'s immediate predecessor who
made the famous remark, ^^ The state is myself." But
the English king could not impose taxes ; the only
power in England that could do that was the House of
Commons, and accordingly it is correct to say that in
England, at the time of which we are speaking, the
government was (as it still is) in the House of Com-
mons.
I say, then, the most essential feature of a govern-
ment — or at any rate the feature with which it is
most important for us to become familiar at the start
— is its power of taxation. The government is that
iMfferenoe which taxcs. If individuals take away some
u^ti^ ^^ y^^^ property for pm*poses of their own,
and robbery, j^ jg poj^b^ry ; you losc your moucy and get
nothing in return. But if the govenunent takes away
some of your property in the shape of taxes, it is sup-
posed to render to you an equivalent in the shape of
good government, something without which our lives
and property would not be safe. Herein seems to lie
the difference between taxation and robbery. When
the highwayman points his pistol at me and I hand
him my purse and watch, I am robbed. But when I
pay the tax-collector, who can seize my watch or sell
my house over my head if I refuse, I am simply pay-
ing what is fairly due from me toward supporting the
government.
In what we have been saying it has thus far been
assumed that the government is in the hands of up-
right and competent men and is properly administered.
It is now time to observe that robbery may be com-
mitted by governments as well as by individuals. If
TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT. 9
the business of governing is placed in the hands of
men who have an imperfect sense of their duty toward
the public, if such men raise money by taxa-
tion and then spend it on their own pleas- tazattoni*
ures, or to increase their political influence,
or for other illegitimate purposes, it is really robbery,
just as much as if these men were to stand with pis-
tols by the roadside and empty the wallets of people
passing by. They make a dishonest use of their high
position a^ members of government, and extort money
for which they make no return in the shape of ser-
vices to the public. EUstory is full of such lament-
able instances of misgovemment, and one of the most
important uses of the study of history is to teach us
how they have occurred, in order that we may learn
how to avoid them, as far as possible, in the future.
When we begin in childhood the study of history
we are attracted chiefly by anecdotes of heroes and
their battles, kings and their courts, how the ^he study
Spartans fought at Thermopylae, how Alfred ^^ i^Jato'y-
let the cakes bum, how Henry VIII. beheaded his
wives, how Louis XIV. used to live at Versailles. It
is quite right that we should be interested in such per-
sonal details, the more so the better ; for history has
been made by individual men and women, and until
we have understood the character of a great many of
those who have gone before us, and how they thought
and felt in their time, we have hardly made a fair
beginning in Ae study of history. The greatest his-
torians, such as Freeman and Mommsen, show as
lively an interest in persons as in principles ; and I
would not give much for the historical theories of a
man who should declare himself indifferent to little
personal details.
Some people, however, never outgrow the child's
10 TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT.
notion of history as merely a mass of pretty anec-
dotes or stupid annals, -without any practical bearing
upon our own every-day life. There could not be a
greater mistake. Very little has happened in the
past which has not some immediate prac-
iHractioai tical Icssous for US ; and when we study his-
tory m order to profit by the experience of
our ance^rs, to find out wherein they succeeded and
wherein they failed, in order that we may emulate
their success and avoid their errors, then history be-
comes the noblest and most valuable of studies. It
then becomes, moreover, an arduous pursuit, at once
oppressive and fascinating from its endless wealth of
material, and abounding in problems which the most
diligent student can never hope completely to solve.
Few people have the leisure to undertake a syste-
matic and thorough study of history, but every one
ought to find time to learn the principal features of
the governments under which we live, and to get some
inkling of the way in which these governments have
come into existence and of the causes which have
made them what they are. Some such
and helpful , i •, . jj xT_ j«
to those who knowledfiTe is necessary for the proper dis-
would be ^^ ., . ..
good citi- charge of the duties of citizenship. Political
questions, great and small, are perpetually
arising, to be discussed in the newspapers and voted
on at the polls ; and it is the duty of every man and
woman, young or old, to try to understand them.
That is a duty which we owe, each and all of us, to
ourselves and to our fellow-countrymen. For if such
questions are not settled in accordance with knowledge,
they will be settled in accordance with ignorance ; and
that is a kind of settlement likely to be fraught with
results disastrous to everybody. It cannot be too often
re}>eated that eternal vigilance is the price of lib*
TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT. 11
erty. People sometimes arg^e as if they supposed
that because our national government is called a re-
public and not a monarchy, and because we steniai
have free schools and universal suffrage, Jto]^Sl
therefore our liberties are forever secure. ^*»®^*
Our government is, indeed, in most respects, a marvel
of political skill ; and in ordinary times it jruns so
smoothly that now and then, absorbed as most of us
are in domestic cares, we are apt to forget that it will
not run of itself. To insure that the government of
the nation or the state, of the city or the township, shall
be properly administered, requires from every citizen
the utmost watchfulness and intelligence of which he
is capable.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
To the teacher, Enconrage full answers. Do not permit any-
thing like committing the text to memory. In the long run the
pupil who relies upon his own language, however inferior it may
be to that of the text, is hotter off. Naturally, with thoughtful
study, the pupil's language will feel the influence of that of the
text, and so improve. The important thing in any answer is
the fundamental thought. This idea once grasped, the expres-
sion of it may receive some attention. The expression will often
be broken and faulty, partly because of the immaturity of the
pupil, and partly because of the newness and difficulty of the
theme. Do not let the endeavour to secure excellent expression
check a certain freedom and spontaneity that should be encour-
aged in the pupil. When the teacher desires to place special
stress on excellent presentation, it is wise to assign topics before-
hand, so that each pupil may know definitely what is expected
of him, and prepare himself accordingly.
1. Tell the story that introduces the chapter.
2. What lesson is it designed to teach ?
3. What caused the French Revolution ?
4. What caused the American Revolution ?
5. Compare the tax bill with that of the butcher or tailor.
6. What are taxes raised for in a town ? For whose benefit ?
7. Define taxes.
12 TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT.
8. Define the right of eminent domain.
9. Distingnish between taxes and the right of eminent domain.
10. What is the origin of the word " govern " ?
11. Define government.
12. By whom is it supported, how is it kept alive, and by whom
is it carried on ?
13. Give illustrations of governments.
14. What one power must government have to be worthy of the
name?
15. What was the principal weakness of the government during
the American Revolution ?
16. Compare this government with that of the United States
since 1789.
1 7. If it is doubtful what the real government of a country is,
how may the doubt be settled ?
1 8. Illustrate by reference to France and England in the eigh-
teenth century.
19. What is the difference between taxation and robbery ?
20. Under what conditions may taxation become robbery ?
21 . To what are we easily attracted in our first study of history ?
22. What ought to be learned from history ?
23. What sort of knowledge is helpful in discharging the duties
of citizenship?
24. Show how << eternal vigilance is the price of liberty."
BUGOESTIVE QUESTIONS AND DIRECTIONB.
To the teticher. The object of this series of questions and
suggestions is to stimulate reading, investigating, and thinking.
It is not expected, indeed it is hardly possible, that each pupil
shall respond to them all. A single question may cost prolonged
study. Assign the numbers, therefore, to individuals to report
upon at a subsequent recitation, — one or more to each pupil,
according to the difficulty of the numbers. Reserve some for
class consideration or discussion. Now and then let the teacher
answer a question himself, partly to furnish the pupils with good
examples of answers, and partly to insure attention to matters
that might otherwise escape notice.
I. Are there people who receive no benefit from their payment
of taxes?
3. Are the benefits received by people in proportion to the
amounts paid by them ?
TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT. 18
3. Show somewhat fully what taxes had to do with the Fr^ich
Revolution.
4. Show somewhat fully what taxes had to do with the American
Revolution.
5. Give illustiations of the exercise of the right of eminent
domain in your own town or county or state.
6. Do railroad corporations exercise such a right ? How do
they succeed in getting land for their tracks ?
7. In case of disag^ement, how is a fair price determined for
property taken by eminent domain ?
8. What persons are prominent to-day in the government of
your own town or city ? Of your own county ? Of your
own state ? Of the United States ?
9. Who constitute the government of the school to which you
belong? Does this question admit of more than one
answer ? Has the government of your school any power
to tax the people to support the school ?
10. What is the difference between a state and the government
of a state ?
11. Which is the more powerful branch of the English Parlia-
ment ? Why ?
12. Is it a misuse of the funds of a city to provide entertain-
ments for the people July 4 ? To expend money in en-
tertaining distinguished guests? To provide flowers*
carriages, cigars, wines, etc., for such guests ?
13. What is meant by subordinating public ofi&ce to private
ends ? Cite instances from history.
14. What histories have you read ? What one of them, if any,
would you call a ** child's history," or a *' drum and trum-
pet " history ? What one of them, if any, has impressed
any lessons upon you ?
15. Mention some principles that history has taught you.
16. Mention a few ofi&ces, and tell the sort of intelligence that is
needed by the persons who hold them. What results
might follow if such intelligence were lacking ?
M TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.
It 18 designed in the bibliographical notes to indicate some
thorities to which reference may be made for greater detail than
is possible in an elementary work like the present. It is be-
lieved that the notes will prove a help to teacher and pupil in
special investigations, and to the reader who may wish to make
selections from excellent sources for purposes of self-culture.
It is hardly necessary to add that it is sometimes worth much
to the student to know where valuable information may be ob-
tained, even when it is not practicable to make inmiediate use
of it.
Certain books should always be at the teacher's desk during
the instruction in civil government, and as easily accessible as
the large dictionary ; as, for instance, the following : The Gen-
eral Statutes of the state, the manual or blue-book of the state
legislature, and, if the school is in a city, the city charter and
ordinances. It is also desirable to add to this list the statutes of
the United States and a manual of Congress or of the general
government. Manuals may be obtained through representatives
in the state legislature and in Congress. They will answer nearly
every purpose if they are not of the latest issue. The StateS"
man's Year Book, published by Macmillan & Co., New York,
every year, is exceedingly valuable for reference. Certain al-
manacs, particularly the comprehensive ones issued by the New
York Tribune and the New York World, are rich in state and
national statistics, and so inexpensive as to be within everybody's
means.
Taxation and GtOvernment. — As to the causes of the
American revolution, see my War of Independence, Boston,
1889 ; and as to the weakness of the government of the United
States before 1789, see my Critical Period of American History^
Boston, 1888. As to the causes of the French revolution, see
Paul Lacombe, The Growth of a People, N. Y., 1883, and the
third volume of Eitchin's History of France, London, 1887 ; also
Morse Stephens, The French Revolution, vol. i., N. Y., 1887 ;
Taine, The Ancient Regime, N. Y., 1876, and The RevoltUion, 2
vols., N. Y., 1880. The student may read with pleasure and
profit Dickens's TcUe of Ttoo Cities. For the student familiar
TAXATION AND GOVERNMENT. 16
with French, an excellent book is Albert Babeau, Le Village sous
Vancien Regimey Paris, 1879 ; see also Tocqueville, Uancien Regime
et la Revolutiorif 7th ed., Paris, 1866. There is a good sketdi of
the causes of the French revolution in the fifth volume of
Lecky's History of England in the Eighteenth Century, N. Y., 1887 ;
see also Buckle's History of Civilization^ chaps. zii.~xiv. There is
no better commentary on my first chapter than the lurid history
of France in the eighteenth century. The strong contrast to
English and American history shows us most instructively what
we have thus far escaped.
CHAPTER n.
THE TOWNSHIP.
§ 1. The New £higland ToumsMp.
Of the various kinds of goyemment to be found in
the United States, we may begin by considering that
of the New England township. As we shall presently
see, it is in principle of aU known forms of govem-
ment the oldest as well as the simplest. Let ns ob-
serve how the New England township grew np.
When people from England first came to dwell in
the wilderness of Massachusetts Bay, they settled in
groups upon small irregular-shaped patches of land,
which soon came to be known as townships. There
were several reasons why they settled thus in small
groups, instead of scattering about over the country
and carving out broad estates for themselves. In the
first place, their principal reason for coming
und TO to New England was their dissatisfaction
church con- with the way in which church affairs were
managed in the old country. They wished
to bring about a reform in the church, in such wise
that the members of a congregation should have more
voice than formerly in the church-government, and
that the minister of each congregation should be more
independent than formerly of the bishop and of the
civil government. They also wished to abolish sim-
dry rites and customs of the church of which they
THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIP. IT
had come to disapprove. Finding the resistance to
their reforms quite formidable in England, and having
some reason to fear that they might be themselves
crushed in the struggle, they crossed the ocean in
order to carry out their ideas in a new and remote
country where they might be comparatively secure
from interference. Hence it was quite natural that
they should come in congregations, led by their favour-
ite ministers, — such men, for example, as Higginson
and Cotton, Hooker and Davenport. When such
men, famous in England for their bold preaching and
imperilled thereby, decided to move to America, a
considerable number of their parishioners would de-
cide to accompany them, and similarly minded members
of neighbouring churches would leave their own pastor
and join in the migration. Such a group of people,
arriving on the coast of Massachusetts, would natu-
rally select some convenient locality, where they might
build their houses near together and all go to the same
church.
This migration, therefore, was a movement, not of
individuals or of separate families, but of church-
congregations, and it continued to be so as the settlers
made their way inland and westward. The first river
towns of Connecticut were founded by congregations
coming from Dorchester, Cambridge, and Watertown.
This kind of settlement was favoured by the govern-
ment of Massachusetts, which made grants
of land, not to individuals but to companies
of people who wished to live together and attend the
same church.
In the second place, the soil of New England was
not favourable to the cultivation of great quantities of
staple articles, such as rice or tobacco, so that there
was nothing to tempt people to undertake exten-
18 THE TOWNSHIP.
sire ]dantatiinis. Most of the pecqile fi^ed on snudl
farnns, each femify raisbig bot litde mcRe than enongh
food for its own siqpport ; and the amallsue
of the fanns made h poasiUe to haTe a good
many in a compact neig^ibooriiood. It appealed also
tkat towns could be more easify defended against the
Indians than scattered plantations ; and this doubtless
helped to keep people together, although if there had
beeai any strong inducement for sditaiy |noneers to
plunge into the great woods, as in later years so often
happened at the West, it is not likely that any dread
of the savages would have hindered than.
Thus the early settlers of New England came to
live in townships. A township would consist of about
as many farms as could be disposed widiin convenient
distance from die meeting-house, where all the inhab-
tants, young and old, gathered eveiy Sunday, coming
on horseback or afoot. The meeting-house was thus
TowBibip centrally situated, and near it was Hie town
andTflbce. p^gture or " common,'' with the school-house
and the block-house, or rude fortress for defence
against the Indians. For the latter building some
ccmunanding position was apt to be selected, and hence
we so often find the old village streets of New Eng-
land nmning along elevated ridges or climbing over
beetling hilltops. Around the meeting-house and
common the dwellings gradually clustered into a vil-
lage, and after. a while the tavern, store, and town-
house made their appearance.
Among the people who thus tilled the farms and
built up the villages of New England, tiie differences
in what we should call social position, though notice-
able, were not extreme. While in England some had
been esquires or country magistrates, or ^' lords of the
manor," — a phrase which does not mean a member
THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIP. 19
of the peerage, but a landed proprietor with dependent
tenants ; ^ some had been yeomen, or persons holding
farms by some free kind of tenure ; some
had been artisans or tradesmen in cities. tionofMt^
All had for many generations been more or
less accustomed to self-government and to public meet-
ings for discussing local affairs. That self-govern-
ment, especially as far as church matters were con-
cerned, they were stoutly bent upon maintaining and
extending. Indeed, that was what they had crossed
the ocean for. Under these circumstances they de-
veloped a kind of government which we may describe
in the present tense, for its methods are pretty much
the same to-day that they were two centuries ago.
In a New England township the people directly
govern themselves ; the government is the people, or,
to speak with entire precision, it is aU the male inhab-
itants of one-and-twenty years of age and upwards.
The people tax themselves. Once each year, usually
in March but sometimes as early as February or as
late as April, a " town-meeting " is held, at ^he town-
which all the grown men of the township are ™®«**°«-
expected to be present and to vote, while any one may
introduce motions or take part in the discussion. In
early times there was a fine for non-attendance, but
that is no longer the case ; it is supposed that a due re-
gard to his own interests will induce every man to come.
The town-meeting is held in the town-house, but at
first it used to be held in the church, which was thus
a '' meeting-house " for civil as well as ecclesiastical
purposes. At the town-meeting measures relating to
the administration of town affairs are discussed and
adopted or rejected ; appropriations are made for the
public expenses of the town, or in other words the
^ Compare the Scottish '' laird."
20 THE TOWNSHIP.
amount of the town taxes for the year is determined ;
and town officers are elected for the year. Let us first
enumerate these officers.
The principal executive magistrates of the town are
the selectmen. They are three, five, seven, or nine in
number, according to the size of the town and the
amount of public business to be transacted. The odd
number insures a majority decision in case of any
difference of opinion among them. They have the
general management of the public business.
They issue warrants for the holding of town-
meetings, and they can. call such a meeting at any
time during the year when there seems to be need for
it, but the warrant must always specify the subjects
which are to be discussed and acted on at the meeting.
The selectmen also lay out highways, grant licenses,
and impanel jurors ; they may act as health officers
and issue orders regarding sewerage, the abatement of
nuisances, or the isolation of contagious diseases ; in
many cases they act as assessors of taxes, and as over-
seers of the poor. They are the proper persons to
listen to complaints if anything goes wrong in the
town. In coimty matters and state matters they speak
for the town, and if it is a party to a law-suit they
represent it in court ; for the New England town is a
legal corporation, and as such can hold property, and
sue and be sued. In a certain sense the selectmen
may be said to be '^ the government " of the town
during the intervals between the town-meetings.
An officer no less important than the selectmen is
the town-clerk. He keeps the record of all votes
passed in the town-meetings. He also re-
cords the names of candidates and the num-
ber of votes for each in the election of state and
county officers. He records the births, marriages,
THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIP. 21
and deaths in the township, and issues certificates to
persons who declare an intention of marriage. He
likewise keeps on record accurate descriptions of the
position and bounds of public roads ; and, in short,
has general charge of all matters of town-record.
Every town has also its treasurer, who receives and
takes care of the money coming in from the xown.
taxpayers, or whatever money belongs to *'«"^"«'-
the town. Out of this money he pays the public ex-
penses. He must keep a strict account of his receipts
and payments, and make a report of them each year.
Every town has one or more constables, who serve
warrants from the selectmen and writs from
the law courts. They pursue cnminals and
take them to jaiL They sunmion jurors. In many
towns they serve as collectors of taxes, but in many
other towns a special officer is chosen for that pur-
pose. When a person fails to pay his taxes, after a
specified time the collector has authority to seize upon
his properly and sell it at auction, paying the tax and
costs out of the proceeds of the sale, and handing
over the balance to the owner. In some cases, where
no properly can be found and there is reason to be-
Ueve that the delinquent is not acting in good faith,
he can be arrested and kept in prison until the tax
and costs are paid, or until he is released by the
proper legal methods.
Where the duties of the selectmen are likely to be
too numerous, the town may choose three or AflsesBorBoi
more assessors of taxes to prepare the tax J^?SeS?o£
lists; and three or more overseers of the *^®poo'-
poor, to regulate the management of the village alms-
Bouse and confer with other towns upon such ques-
tions as often arise concerning the settlement and
maintenance of homeless paupers.
22 THE TOWNSHIP.
Every town has its school committee. In 1647 the
legislature of Massachusetts enacted a law with the
following preamble : ^^ It being one chief project of
Pui^uc that old deluder, Satan, to keep men from
***^^ the knowledge of the Scriptures, as in for-
mer times by keeping them in an unknown tongue, so
in these latter times by persuading from the use of
tongues, that so at least the true sense and meaning
of the original might be clouded and corrupted with
false glosses of deceivers ; to the end that learning
may not be buried in the graves of our forefathers,
in church and commonwealth, the Lord assisting our
endeavours ; " it was therefore ordered that every
township containing fifty families or householders
shoiild forthwith set up a school in which children
might be taught to read and write, and that every
township containing one hundred families or house-
holders should set up a school in which boys might be
fitted for entering Harvard College. Even before this
statute, several towns, as for instance Eoxbury and
Dedham, had begun to appropriate money for free
schools ; and these were the beginnings of a system
of public education which has come to be adopted
throughout the United States.
The school committee exercises powers of such a
School character as to make it a body of great im-
committeeB. portaucc. The term of service of tiie mem-
bers is three years, one third being chosen annually.
The number of members must theretore be some mul-
tiple of three. The slow change in the membership
of the board insures that a large proportion of the
members shall always be familiar with the duties of
the place. The school committee must visit all the
public schools at least once a month, and make a re-
port to the town every year. It is for them to decide
THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIP. 28
what text-books are to be used. Tbey examine can-
didates for the position of teacher and issue certifi-
cates to those whom they select. The certificate is
issued in duplicate, and one copy is handed to the
selectmen as a warrant that the teacher is entitled to
receive a salary. Teachers are appointed for a term
of one year, but where their work is satisfactory the
appointments are usually renewed year after year. A
recent act in Massachusetts permits the appointment
of teachers to serve during good behaviour, but few
boards have as yet availed themselves of this law. If
the amount of work to be done seems to require it,
the committee appoints a superintendent of schools.
He is a sort of lieutenant of the school committee, and
ander its general direction carries on the detailed
work of supervision.
Other town officers are the surveyors of highways,
who are responsible for keeping the roads and bridges
in repair ; field - drivers and pound-keepers ; fence-
viewers ; surveyors of lumber, measurers of wood,
and sealers of weights and measures.
The field-driver takes stray animals to the pound,
and then notifies their owner ; or if he does
not know who is the owner he posts a de- and pound-
scription of the animals in some such place
as the village store or tavern, or has it published in
the nearest country newspaper. Meanwhile the strays
are duly fed by the pound-keeper, who does not let
them out of his custody until all ex{)enses have been
paid.
If the owners of contiguous farms, gardens, or
fields get into a dispute about their partition fences
or walls, they may apply to one of the fence- j-ence-
viewers, of whom each town has at least ^®^®^
two. The fence-viewer decides the matter, and charge^
24 THE TOWNSHIP.
a small fee for his services. Where it is necessary he
may order suitable walls or fences to be bnilt.
The surveyors of lumber measure and mark lumber
offered for sale. The measurers of wood do the same
Qtj^„ for firewood. The sealers test the correct-
""**'^ ness of weights and measures used in trade,
and tradesmen are not allowed to use weights and
measures that have not been thus officially examined
and sealed. Measurers and sealers may be appointed
by the selectmen.
Such are the officers always to be found in the Mas-
sachusetts town, except where the duties of some of
them are discharged by the selectmen. Of these offi-
cers, the selectmen, town-clerk, treasurer, constable,
school committee, and assessors must be elected by
ballot at the annual town-meeting.
When this meeting is to be called the selectmen
issue a warrant for the purpose, specifying the time
and place of meeting and the nature of the business
to be transacted. The constable posts copies of tiie
warrant in divers conspicuous places not less than a
week before the time appointed. Then, after
townrmeetr making a note upon the warrant that he has
duly served it, he hands it over to the town-
clerk. On the appointed day, when the people have
assembled, the town-clerk calls the meeting to order
and reads the warrant. The meeting then proceeds
to choose by ballot its presiding officer, or " modera-
tor," and businessigoes on in accordance with parlia*
mentary customs pretty generally recognized among
all people who speak English.
At this meeting the amount of money to be raised
by taxation for town purposes is determined. But, as
we shall see, every inhabitant of a town lives not only
under a town government, but also under a county
THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIP. 26
goyemment and a state govemment, and all these gov-
ernments have to be supported by taxation.
T iLM- 1 1 11 Town, coon-
In Massachusetts the state and the county ty, «nd
make use of the machinery of the town
govemment in order to assess and collect their taxes.
The total amounts to be raised are equitably divided
among the several towns and cities, so that each town
pays its proportionate share. Each year, therefore,
the town assessors know that a certain amount of
money must be raised from the taxpayers of their
town, — partly for the town, partly for the county,
partly for the state, — and for the general convenience
they usually assess it upon the taxpayers all at once.
The amounts raised for the state and county are usu-
ally very much smaller than the amount raised for
the town. As these amounts are all raised in the
town and by town officers, we shall find it convenient
to sum up in this place what we have to say about the
way in which taxes are raised. Bear in mind that we
are stiU considering the New England system, and
our illustration is taken from the practice in Massa-
chusetts. But the general principles of taxation are
so similar in the different states that, although we
may now and then have to point to differences of
detail, we shall not need to go over the whole subject
again. We have now to observe how and upon whom
the taxes are assessed.
They are assessed partly upon persons, but chiefly
upon property, and property is divisible into real
estate and personal estate. The tax assessed
. Poll4az.
upon persons is called the poll-tax, and can-
not exceed the sum of two dollars upon every male cit-
izen over twenty years old. In cases of extreme pov-
erty the assessors may remit the poll-tax.
As to real estate, there are in every town some
26 THE TOWNSHIP.
lands and bnildings which, for reasons of public pol-
BoriMhitir ^^7) ^^"^ exempted from paying taxes ; as, for
***®^ example, churches, graveyards, and tombs ;
many charitable institutions, including universities
and colleges; and public buildings which belong to
the state or to the United States. All lands and
buildings, except such as are exempt by law, must
pay taxes.
Personal property includes pretty much everything
that one can own except lands and buildings, — pretty
much everything that can be moved or car-
IVltmi nn
penonai ricd about from one place to another. It
thus includes ready money, stocks and bonds,
ships and wagons, furniture, pictures, and books. It
also includes the amount of debts due to a person in
excess of the amount that he owes ; also the income
from his employment, whether in the shape of profits
from business or a fixed salary.
Some p.».^ p«,perty i.Ie„p^ fc». .«»«» ,
as, for example, household furmture to the amount of
$1,000 in value, and income from employment to the
extent of $2,000. The obvious intent of this exemp-
tion is to prevent taxation from bearing too hard upon
persons of small means ; and for a similar reason the
tools of farmers and mechanics are exempted.^
The date at which property is annually reckoned
for assessment is in Massachusetts the first day of
May. The poll-tax is assessed upon each person in
the town or city where he has his legal habitation on
^^ that day; and as a general rule the taxes
when taxes uDou his Dcrsoual property are assessed to
iro nnnciBnofl ax./
him in the same place. But taxes upon
lands or buUdings are assessed in the city or town
^ United States bonds are also especially exempted from tax-
ation.
THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIP. 27
where they are situated, and to the person, wherever
he lives, who is the owner of them on the first day of
May. Thus a man who lives in the Berkshire moun-
tains, say for example in the town of Lanesborough,
will pay his poll-tax to that town. For his personal
property, whether it be bonds of a railroad in Col-
orado, or shares in a bank in New York, or costly
pictures in his house at Lanesborough, he will like-
wise pay taxes to Lanesborough. So for the house in
which he lives, and the land upon which it stands, he
pays taxes to that same town. But if he owns at the
same time a house in Boston, he pays taxes for it to
Boston, and if he owns a block of shops in Chicago
he pays taxes for the same to Chicago. It is very apt
to be the case that the rate of taxation is higher in
large cities than in villages ; and accordingly it often
happens that wealthy inhabitants of cities, who own
houses in some coimtry town, move into them before
the first of May, and otherwise comport themselves as
legal residents of the country town, in order that their
personal property may be assessed there rather than
in the city.
About the first of May the assessors call upon the
Inhabitants of their town to render a true statement
as to their properly. The most approved form is for
the assessors to send by mail to each taxable inhabitant
a printed list of questions, with blank spaces which
he is to fill with written answers. The questions relate
to every kind of property, and when the «. jj^^
person addressed returns the list to the as-
sessors he must make oath that to the best of his
knowledge and belief his answers are true. He thus
becomes liable to the penalties for perjury if he can be
proved to have sworn falsely. A reasonable time —
usually six or eight weeks — is allowed for the list to
28 THE TOWNSHIP.
be returned to the assessors. If any one fails to
return his list by the specified time, the assessors must
make their own estimate of the probable amount of
his property. If their estimate is too high, he may
petition the assessors to have the error corrected, but
in many cases it may prove troublesome to effect this.
Observe here an important difference between the
imposition of taxes upon real estate and upon personal
property. Houses and lands cannot run away or be
tucked out of sight. Their value, too, is something
of which the assessors, can very likely judge as well
^^ ^ as the owner. Deception is therefore ex-
the govern- trcmcly difficult, and taxation for real estate
is pretty fairly distributed among the differ-
ent owners. With regard to personal estate it is very
different. It is comparatively easy to conceal one's
ownership of some kinds of personal property, or to
understate one's income. Hence the temptation to
lessen the burden of the tax bill by making false
statements is considerable, and doubtless a good deal
of deception is practised. There are many people
who are too honest to cheat individuals, but still con-
sider it a venial sin to cheat the government.
After the assessors have obtained all their returns
they can calculate the total value of the taxable prop-
erty in the town ; and knowing the amount of the tax
to be raised, it is easy to calculate the rate at which the
The rate of **^ ^^ ^ ^® asscsscd. In most parts of the
taxation. United States a rate of one and a half per
cent, or $15 tax on each $1,000 worth of property,
would be regarded as moderate ; three per cent would
be regarded as excessively high. At the lower of
these rates a man worth $50,000 would pay $750 for
his yearly taxes. The annual income of $50,000, in-
vested on good security, is hardly more than $2,500.
THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIP. 29
Obviously $750 is a large sum to subtract from such
an income.
In point of fact, however, the tax is seldom quite as
heavy as this. It is not easy to tell exactly how much
a man is worth, and accordingly assessors, not wish-
ing to be too disagreeable in the discharge of their
duties, have naturally fallen into a way of giving the
lower valuation the benefit of the doubt, until in many
places a custom has grown up of regularly undemauii-
undervaluing property for purposes of taxa- ****"•
tion. Very much as liquid measures have gradually
shrunk imtil it takes five quart bottles to hold a gal-
lon, so there has been a shrinkage of valuations until
it has become common to tax a man for only three
fourths or perhaps two thirds of what his property is
worth in the market. This makes the rate higher, to
be sure, but the individual taxpayer nevertheless
seems to feel relieved by it. Allowing for this imder-
valuation, we may say that a man worth $50,000 com-
monly pays not less than $500 for his yearly taxes, or
about one fifth of the annual income of the property.
We thus begin to see what a heavy burden Theborfm
taxes are, and how essential to good govern- ®' <»»*»">•
ment it is that citizens should know what their money
goes for, and should be able to exert some effective
control over the public expenditures. Where the rate
of taxation in a town rises to a very high point, such
as two and a half or three per cent, the prosperity of
the town is apt to be seriously crippled. Traders and
manufacturers move away to other towns, or those
who would otherwise come to the town in question
stay away, because they cannot afford to use up all
their profits in paying taxes. If such a state of things
is long kept up, the spirit of enterprise is weakened,
the place shows signs of untidiness and want of thrift,
80 THE TOWNSHIP.
and neighbouring towns, onoe perhaps far behind it
in growth, by and by shoot ahead of it and take away
its business. .
Within its proper sphere, government by town-
meeting is the form of government most effectively
under watch and control. Everything is done in the
full daylight of publicity. The specific objects for
which public money is te be appropriated are dis-
cussed in the presence of everybody, and any one who
disapproves of any of these objects, or of the way in
which it is proposed to obtain it, has an opportunity
to declare his opinions. Under this form of govern-
ment people are not so liable to bewildering delusions
as under other forms. I refer especially to the delu-
power, possessed of a ma&:ic inexhaustible
fond ** deto- fuud of Wealth, and able to do all manner
of things for the benefit of " the People."
Some such notion as this, more often implied than
expressed, is very commSn, and it is inexpressibly dear
to demagogues. It is the prolific root from which
^springs that luxuriant crop of humbug upon which
political tricksters thrive as pigs fatten upon com.
In point of fact no such government, armed with a
magic fund of its own, has ever existed upon the earth.
No government has ever yet used any money for pub-
lie purposes which it did not first take from its own
people, — unless when it may have plundered it from
some other people in victorious warfare.
The inhabitant of a New England town is per-
petually reminded that ^^the Government" is ^^the
People." Although he may think loosely about the
government of his state or the still more remote gov- -
emment at Washington, he is kept pretty close to i
the facts where local affairs are concerned, and in <
this there is a political training of no small value. ^
THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIP. 81
In the kind of discussion wluch it provokes, in the
necessity of facing argument with argument Bduautoiua
and of keeping one's temper under control, ^^SSLm^
the town-meeting is the best political train- ^'
ing school in existence. Its educational value is far
higher than that of the newspaper, which, in spite of
its many merits as a diffuser of information, is very
apt to do its best to bemuddle and sophisticate plain
facts. The period when town-meetings were most im-
portant from the wide scope of their transactions was
the period of earnest and sometimes stormy discussion
that ushered in our Revolutionary war. Country
towns were then of more importance relatively than
now ; one country town — Boston — was at the same
time a great political centre ; and its meetings were pre-
sided over and addressed by men of commanding abil-
ity, among whom Samuel Adams, *^ the man of the
town-meeting," ^ was foremost. In those days great
principles of government were discussed with a wealth
df knowledge and stated with masterly skill in town-
meeting.
The town-meeting is to a very limited extent a leg-
idative body ; it can make sundry regulations for the
management of its local affairs. Such regulations are
known by a very ancient name, " by-laws."
^ is an Old Norse word meaning " town,"
and it appears in the names of such towns as Derby
and Whitby in the part of England overrun by the
Danes in the ninth and tenth centuries. By-laws are
town laws.^
^ The phrase is Professor Hosmer's : see his Samuel AdamSf
Ae Man of the Town Meeting, in << Johns Hopkins Univ. Studies,"
ToL XL no. iv. ; also his Samuel Adams, in " American States^
** serieSy Boston, 1885.
' In modem usage the rules and regulations of dubs, learned
and other associations, are also called by-lawa.
82 THE TOWNSHIP.
In the selectmen and various special officers the
town has an executive department; and here let us
observe that, while these officials are kept strictly ac-
countable to the people, they are intrusted with very
considerable authority. Things are not so arranged
that an officer can plead that he has failed
re^oiuitaa- in his duty from lack of power. There is
ample power, joined with complete responsi-
bility. This is especially to be noticed in the case of
the selectmen. They must often be called upon to
exercise a wide discretion in what they do, yet this ex-
cites no serious popular distrust or jealousy* The an-
nual election affords an easy means of dropping an
unsatisfactory officer. But in practice nothing has
been more common than for the same persons to be
reelected as selectmen or constables or town-derks for
year after year, as long as they are able or willing to
serve. The notion that there is anything peculiarly
American or democratic in what is known as *^ rota-
tion in office " is therefore not sustained by the prac-
tice of the New England town, which is the most com-
plete democracy in the world. It is the most perfect
exhibition of what President Lincohi called '' govern-
ment of the people by the people and for the peo-
ple."
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. What reason exists for beginning the study of govemment
with that of the New England township ?
2. Give the origin of the township in New England according
to the following analysis : —
a. Settlement in groups.
h* The chief reason for coming to New England.
c. The leaders of the groups.
d. The favouring action of the Massachusetts govemment.
e. Small farms.
/. Defence against the Indians.
g. The limits of a township.
h. The village within the township.
THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIP. 38
3. What was the social standing of the first settlers ?
4. What training had they received in self-goyemment ?
5. Who do the governing in a New England township ?
6. Give an account of the town-meeting in accordance with the
following analysis : —
a. The name of the meeting.
h. The time for holding it.
c. The place for holding it.
d. The persons who take part in it.
e. The sort of business done in it.
7. Give an account of the selectmen : —
a. Their number.
&. The reason for an odd number,
c. Their duties.
8. When public schools were established by Massachusetts in
1647, what reasons were assigned for the law ?
9. What classes or grades of schools were then established ?
10. What are the duties of the Massachusetts school committee ?
1 1. What is the term of service of teachers in that state ?
12. What are the duties of the following of&cers ? —
a. Field-drivers.
b. Pound-keepers.
c. Fence-viewers.
d* Surveyors of lumber. ^
e. Measurers of wood.
f. Sealers of weights and measures.
13. What are the duties of the following of&oers? —
a. The town-clerk.
h. The treasurer.
c. Constables.
d. Assessors.
e. Overseers of the poor.
14. Describe a warrant for a town-meeting.
1 5. For what other purposes than those of the town are taxes
raised?
16. Explain the following : —
a. The poll-tax.
b. The tax on personal property.
c. The tax on real estate.
1 7. What kinds of real estate are exempted from taxation, and
why?
18. What kinds of personal property are exempted, and why ?
34 THE TOWNSHIP.
19. Where must the several kinds of taxes be assessed and
paid ? Illustrate.
20. If a person changes his residence from one town in the state
to another before May 1, what consequences about taxes
might follow ?
21. How do the assessors ascertain the property for which one
should be taxed ?
22. What difficulties beset the taxation of personal property ?
23. Mention a conunon practice in assigning values to property.
What is the effect on the tax-rate ? Illustrate.
24. How do high taxes operate as a burden ?
25. Describe a delusion from which people who directly govern
themselves are practically &ee.
26. What is the educational value of the town-meeting ?
27. What are by-laws ? Explain the phrase.
28. What of the power and responsibility of selectmen ?
§ 2. Origin of the Township.
It was said above that government by town-meet-
ing is in principle the oldest form of government
Town-meet- kjiown in the world. The student of ancient
oS^ceand l^istory is familiar with the comitia of the
^°^«- Romans and the ecdesia of the Greeks.
These were popular assemblies, held in those soft cli-
mates in the open air, usually in the market-place, —
the Roman forum^ the Greek agora. The govern-
ment carried on in them was a more or less qualified
democracy. In the palmy days of Athens it was a
pure democracy. The assemblies which in the Athe-
nian market-place declared war against Syracuse, or
condemned Socrates to death, were quite like New
England town-meetings, except that they exercised
greater powers because there was no state government
above them.
The principle of the town-meeting, however, is
older than Athens or Rome. Long before streets
were built or fields fenced in, men wandered about the
ORIGIN OF THE TOWNSHIP. 86
earth hunting for food in family parties, somewhat as
lions do in South Africa. Such family groups were
what we call clanSy and so far as is known
they were the earhest form in which civil so-
ciety appeared on the earth. Among all wandering
or partially settled tribes the clan is to be found, and
there are ample opportimities for studyiifg it among
our Indians in North America. The clan usually has
a chief or head-man, useful mainly as a leader in war-
time; its civU government. 4de aad disorderly
enough, is in principle a pure democracy.
When our ancestors first became acquainted with
American Indians, the most advanced tribes lived
partly by hunting and fishing, but partly also by rais-
ing Indian com and pumpkins. They had begun to
live in wigwams grouped together in small villages
and surrounded by strong rows of palisades for de-
fence. Now what these red men were doing our own
fair-haired ancestors in northern and central Europe
had been doing some twenty centuries earlier. The
Scandinavians and GermaQS, when first known in his-
tory, had made considerable progress in exchanging a
wandering for a settled mode of life. When the clan,
instead of moving from place to place, fixed upon
some spot for a permanent residence, a village grew
up there, surrounded by a belt of waste land, or some-
what later by a stockaded wall. The belt of land was
called a marh^ and the wall was called a
tun.^ Afterwards the inclosed space came to and the
be known sometimes as the mark^ sometimes
as the tun or town. In England the latter name pre-
vailed. The inhabitants of a mark or town were a
stationary clan. It was customary to call them by the
dan name, as for example '' the Beorings " or ^^ the
* Pronounced " toon."
86 THE TOWNSHIP.
Cressings ; " then the town would be called Barring-
ton^ " town of the Beorings," or Cressingham^ " home
of the Cressings." . Town name» of this sort, with
which the map of England is thickly studded, point
us back to a time when the town was supposed to be
the stationary home of a clan.
The Old English town had its tungemot^ or town-
meeting, in which ^^ by-laws" were made and other
important business transacted. The principal officers
were the •" reeve " or head-man, the " bea-
"^ die " or messenger, and the " tithing-man »
^ or petty constable. These officers seem at
first to have been elected by the people, but after a
whne, a^ great lordships grew up, usurping jurisdic
tion over the land, the lord's steward and bailiff came
to supersede the reeve and beadle. After the Norman
Conquest the townships, thus brought under the sway
of great lords, came to be generally known by the
French name of manors or " dwelling places.'* Much
might be said about this change, but here it is enough
for us to bear in mind that a manor was essentially
a township in which the chief executive officers were
^ directly responsible to the lord rather than
The manor. ** *■
to the people. It would be wrong, however,
to suppose that the manors entirely lost their self-
government. Even the ancient town-meeting survived
in them, in a fragmentary way, in several interesting
assemblies, of which the most interesting were the
court leet^ for the election of certain officers and the
trial of petty offences, and the court baron^ which was
much like a town-meeting.
Still more of the old self-government would doubt-
less have survived in the institutions of the
manor if it had not been provided for in
another way. The parish was older than the manor.
ORIGIN, OF THE TOWNSHIP. 37
After the English had been converted to Christianity
local churches were gradually set up all over the coun-
try, and districts called parishes were assigned for the
ministrations of the priests. Now a parish generally
coincided in area with a township, or sometimes with
a group of two or three townships. In the old heathen
times each town seems to have had its sacred place or
shrine consecrated to some local deity,, and it was a
favourite policy with the Roman missionary priests
to purify the old shrine and turn it into a church. In
this way the township at the same time naturally be-
came the parish.
As we find it in later times, both before and since
the founding of English colonies in North America,
the township in England is likely to be both
J • U T? Township,
a manor and a parish, i^or some purposes manor, and
• . 1 m • • t parish*
it is the one, for some purposes it is the
other. The townsfolk may be regarded as a group of
tenants of the lord's manor, or as a group of parish-
ioners of the local church. In the latter aspect the
parish retained much of the self-government of the
ancient town. The business with which the lord was
entitled to meddle was strictly limited, and all other
business was transacted in the " vestry-meeting,"
which was practically the old town-meeting ^1,^ vestry-
under a new name. In the course of the ™®®*^-
thirteenth century we find that the parish had acquired
the right of taxing itself for church purposes. Money
needed for the church was supplied in the form of
"church-rates" voted by the ratepayers themselves in
the vestry-meeting, so called because it was originally
held in a room of the church in which vestments were
kept.
The officers of the parish were the constable, the
88 THE TOWNSHIP.
parish and vestry clerks,^ the beadle,^ the ^* waywar.
p^ri^ oiB- ^^^^ *' ^^ surveyors of highways, the " hay-
••^ wards " or fence-viewers, the ** common
drivers," the collectors of taxes, and at the beginning
of the seventeenth century overseers of the poor were
added. There were also churchwardens, usually two
for each parish. Their duties were primarily to take
care of the church property, assess the rates, and call
the vestry-meetings. They also acted as overseers of
the poor, and thus in several ways remind one of the
selectmen of New England. The parish officers were
all elected by the ratepayers assembled in vestry-
meeting, except the common driver and hayward, who
were elected by the same ratepayers' assembled in
court leet. Besides electing parish officers and grant-
ing the rates, the vestry-meeting could enact by-laws ;
and all ratepayers had an equal voice in its deliber-
ations.
During the last two centuries the constitution of
the English parish has undergone some modifications
which need not here concern us. The Puritans who
settled in New Ensrland had grown up under such
parish govLment as I here described, and
tion from thcv wcrc uscd to hearinsT the parish called,
England to "^ . i *.
New Eng. ou some occasious and for some purposes, a
township. If we remember now that the
earliest New England towns were founded by church
congregations, led by their pastors, we can see how
^ Of these two ofi&cers the vestry clerk is the counterpart of
the New England town-clerk.
^ Originally a messenger or crier, the beadle came to assume
some of the functions of the tithing-man or petty constable,
such as keeping order in church, punishing petty offenders, wait-
ing on the clergyman, etc. In New England towns there were
formerly officers called tithing-men, who kept order in chuioh«
arrested tipplers, loafers, and Sabbath-breakers, etc.
ORIGIN OF THE TOWNSHIP. 89
town government in New England originated. It was
simply the English parish government brought into a
new country and adapted to the new situation. Part
of this new situation consisted in the fact that the
lords of the manor were left behind. There was no
longer any occasion to distinguish between the town-
ship as a manor and the township as a parish ; and so,
as the three names had all lived on together, side by
side, in England, it was now the oldest and most gen-
erally descriptive name, "township," that survived,
and has come into use throughout a great part of the
United States. The townsfolk went on making by-
laws, voting supplies of public money, and electing
their magistrates in America, after the fashion with
which they had for ages been familiar in England.
Some of their ofiBices and customs were of hoary an-
tiquity. If age gives respectability, the office of con-
stable may vie with that of king ; and if the annual
town-meeting is usually held in the month of March,
it is because in days of old, long before Magna Charta
was thought of, the rules and regulations for the vil-
la&:e husbandry -were discussed and adopted in time
foTthe spring planting.
To complete our sketch of the origin of the New
England town, one point should here be briefly men-
tioned in anticipation of what will have to be said
hereafter; but it is a point of so much importance
that we need not mind a little repetition in stating it.
We have seen what a great part taxation plays in
the business of government, and we shall presently
have to treat of county, state, and federal Bunding up
governments, all of them wider in their ■****■•
sphere than the town government. In the course of
history, as nations have gradually been built up, these
wider governments have been apt to absorb or sup-
40 THE TOWNSHIP.
plant and crush the narrower governments, such as
the parish or township ; and this process has too often
been destructive to political freedom. Such a result
is, of course, disastrous to everybody ; and if it were
unavoidable, it would be better that great national
governments need never be formed. But it is not un-
avoidable. There is one way of escaping it, and that
is to give the Uttle government of the town some real
share in making up the great government of the state.
That is not an easy thiag to do, as is shown by the
fact that most peoples have failed in the attempt. The
people who speak the English language have been the
most successful, and the device by which they have
^jBpteamibBi^ ovcrcomc the difficulty is Representation.
****^ The town sends to the wider government a
delegation of persons who can represent the town and
its people. They can speak for the town, and have a
voice in the framing of laws and imposition of taxes
by the wider government.
In English townships there has been from time
immemorial a system of representation. Long before
Alfred's time there were "shire-motes," or
Shire-motes. i n •■ .
what were atterwards called county meet-
ings, and to these each town sent its reeve and " four
discreet men " as representatives. Thus to a certain
extent the wishes of the townsfolk could be brought
to bear upon county affairs. By and by this method
was applied on a much wider scale. It was applied to
the whole kingdom, so that the people of all its towns
and parishes succeeded in securing a representation of
their interests in an elective national coimcil or House
of Commons. This great work was accomplished in
Earl Simon's *^® thirteenth century by Simon de Mont-
Pariiamenfc. £qj^^ ^2ij\ of Leiccstcr, and was completed
by Edward I. Simon's parliament, the first in which
ORIGIN OF THE TOWNSHIP. 41
the Commons were fully represented, was assembled
in 1265 ; and the date of Edward's parliament, which
has been called the Model Parliament, was 1295.
These dates have as much interest for Americans as
for Englishmen, because they mark the first definite
establishment of that grand system of representative
government which we are still carrying on at our vari-
ous state capitals and at Washington. For its hiunble
beginnings we have to look back to the " reeve and
four " sent by the ancient townships to the county
meetings.
The English township or parish was thus at an early
period the "unit of representation" in the govern-
ment of the county. It was also a district for the as-
sessment and collection of the national taxes ;
in each parish the assessment was made by unit of rep-
- . « . . 1 . reaentation.
a board of assessors chosen by popular vote.
These essential points reappear in the early history
of New England. The township was not only a self-
governing body, but it was the " unit of representa-
tion " in the colonial legislature, or " General Court ; "
and the assessment of taxes, whether for town pur-
poses or for state purposes, was made by assessors
elected by the townsfolk. In its beginnings and fun-
damentals our political liberty did not originate upon
American soil, but was brought hither by our fore-
fathers the first settlers. They brought their political
institutions with them as naturally as they brought
their language and their social customs.
Observe now that the township is to be regarded in
two lights. It must be considered not only in itself,
but as part of a greater whole. We began by de-
scribing it as a self-governing body, but in order to
complete our sketch we were obliged to speak of it as
a body which has a share in the government of the
42 THE TOWNSHIP.
state and the nation. The latter aspect is as impor-
tant as the former. If the people of a town had only
the power of managing their local afifairs, without the
poller of taking part in the management of national
affairs, their political freedom would be far from com-
plete. In Russia, for example, the larger part of the
vast population is resident in village communities which
have to a considerable extent the power of managing
their local affairs. Such a village community is called
a miV, and like the Engflish township it is
The Rassian , . ^ , '■•
Tiiiaire com. lineally descended from the stationary clan.
represented The pcople of the Russiau mir hold meetings
tionai gov- in which they elect sundry local officers, dis-
tribute the burden of local taxation, make
regulations concerning local husbandry and police,
and transact other business which need not here con-
cern us. But they have no share in the national
government, and are obliged to obey laws which they
have no voice in making, and pay taxes assessed upon
them without their consent ; and accordingly we say
with truth that the Russian people do not possess
political freedom. One reason for this has doubtless
been that in times past the Russian territory was the
great frontier battle-ground between civilized Europe
and the wild hordes of western Asia, and the people
who lived for ages on that turbulent frontier were
subjected to altogether too much conquest. They
have tasted too little of civil government and too much
of military government, — a pennyworth of whole-
some bread to an intolerable deal of sack. The early
English, in their snug little comer of the world,
belted by salt sea, were able to develop their civil
government with less destructive interference. They
made a sound and healthful beginning when they made
the township the "unit of representation" for the
ORIGIN OF THE TOWNSHIP. 48
counly. Then the township, besides managing its
own affairs, began to take part in the management of
wider affairs.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. Show that the principle of government bj town -meeting
was known
a. In ancient Greece and Rome.
h. Earlier still in primitive society.
c. Among the American Indians.
d. Among the old Scandinavians and Germans.
2. Distinguish between the mark and the tun. Illustrate the
English use of the latter name.
3. Give an account of the following : —
a. The English township and its officers before the Conquest.
h. The changes due to the Conquest.
c. The survival of self-government in the manor.
d. The parish and its relation to the township.
4. Contrast the township as a manor with the township as a par^
ish in respect to government.
5. Describe the parish government under the following heads : —
a. The vestry-meeting.
h. Taxation.
c. The officers of the parish.
d. The persons entitled to vote.
6. Show how town government in New England grew out of
parish government in Old England. What features were
retained and what were given up ?
7. Show the antiquity of some details of town government.
8. What is the object of representation f
9. What were the shire'-motes of Alfred's time ?
10. What was the origin of the English House of Commons ?
11. Why should Americans be interested in this English body ?
12. What essential points of the English township reappear in
New England ?
13. In what two aspects must the township now be regarded ?
14. Show how in Russia the township presents one of these as-
pects but lacks the other.
15. What political result follows from the lack of representation
in the Russian township ?
16. Mention one probable reason why England succeeded where
Russia failed ?
44 THE TOWNSHIP.
SUGGKSTIVE QUESTIONS AND DIUCTIOHB.
1. Obtain the following docoments : —
a. A town warrant.
h. A town report.
ۥ A tax bill, a permit, a certificate, or any town paper that
has or may have an official sig^oature.
d, A report of the school committee.
If you live in a city, send to the clerk of a neigfabooiing
town for a warrant, inclosing a stamp for the reply. City
docoments will answer most of the purposes of this exer-
cise.
Make any of the foregoing documents the basis of a report.
2. Give an account of the following : —
a. The various kinds of taxes raised in your town, the amount
of each kind, the valuation, the rate, the proposed use
of the money, etc.
6. The work of any department of the town government for
a year, as, for example, that of the overseers of the
poor,
c. Any pressing need of your town, public sentiment towards
it, the probable cost of satisfying it, the obstacles in
the way of meeting it, etc.
3. A good way to arouse interest in the subject of town g^y-
emment is to organize the class as a town-meeting, and
let it discuss live local questions in accordance with arti-
cles in a warrant. For helpful details attend a town-
meeting, read the record of some meeting, consult some
person familiar with town proceedings, or study the Gen-
eral Statutes.
To insure a discussion, it may be necessary at the outset for
the teacher to assign to the several pupils single points to
be expanded and presented in order.
There is an advantage in the teacher's serving as moderator.
He may, as teacher, pause to give such directions and
explanations as may be helpful to young citizens.
The pupils should be held up to the more obvious require-
ments of parliamentary law, and shown how to use its
rules to accomplish various purposes.
4. Has the state a right to direct the education of its youth ?
If the state has such a right, are there any limits to the
exercise of it ? Does the right to direct the education of
ORIGIN OF THE TOWNSHIP. 46
its youth carry with it the right to abolish private
schools ?
5. Is it wise to assist private educational institutions with pub-
lic funds ?
6. Ought teachers, if approved, to be appointed for one year
only, or during good behaviour ?
7. What classes of ofQcers in a town should serve during good
behaviour? What classes may be frequently changed
without injury to the public ?
8. Compare the school committee in your own state (if it is not
Massachusetts) with that in Massachusetts.
9. Illustrate from personal knowledge the difference between
real estate and personal property.
10. A loans B $1000. May A be taxed for the $1000 ? Why ?
May B be taxed for the $1000 ? Why ? Is it right to
tax both for $1000 ? Suppose B with the money buys
goods of C. Is it right to tax the three for $1000
each?
11. A taxpayer worth $100,000 in personal property makes no
return to the assessors. In their ignorance the assessors
tax him for $50,000 only, and the tax is p^d without
question. Does the taxpayer act honourably ?
12. What difficulties beset the work of the assessors ?
13. Would anything be gained by exempting personal property
from taxation ? If so, what ? Would anything be lost ?
If so, what ?
14. Does any one absolutely escape taxation ?
15. Does the poll-tax payer pay, in any sense, more than his poll-
tax?
id Are there any taxes that people pay without seeming to know
it ? If so, what ? (See below, chap. viii. § 8.).
17* Have we clans to-day among ourselves ? (Think of family
reunions, people of the same name in a community, de-
scendants of early settlers, etc.). What important dif-
ferences exist between these modem so-called clans and
the ancient ones ?
1 8. What is a '' clannish" spirit ? Is it a good spirit or a bad
one ? Is it ever the same as patriotism ?
19. Look up the meaning of ham, toick, and stead. Think of
towns whose names contain these words ; also of towns
whose names contain the word tun or ton or toum.
2a Give an account of the tithing-man in early New England.
46 THE TOWNSHIP.
21. In what sense is the word '' parish ^ commonly used in the
United States ? Is the parish the same as the ohoroh ?
Has it any limits of territory ?
22. In Massachusetts, clergymen were formerly paid out of the
taxes of the township. How did this come ahout ? In
this practice was there a union or a separation of chorch
and state ?
23. Ministers are not now supported by taxation in the United
States. What important change in the parish idea does
this fact indicate ? Is it a change for the better ?
24. Are women who do not vote represented in town govern-
ment ?
25. Are boys and girls represented in town government ?
26. Is there anybody in a town who is not represented in its gov-
emment ?
27. How are citizens of a town represented in state govern-
ment ?
28. How are citizens of a town represented in the national gov-
emment ?
29. Imagine a situation in which the ballot of a single voter in
a town might affect the action of the national govern-
ment.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.
§ 1. The New England Township. There is a good ac-
count in Martin's Text Book on Civil Government in the United
States. N. Y. & Chicago, 1875.
§ 2. Origin of the Township. Here the Johns Hopkins
University Studies in Historical and Political Science, edited by
Dr. Herbert Adams, are of great value. Note especially series
I. no. i. E. A. Freeman, Introduction to American Institutional
History ; I., ii. iv. viii. ix.-x. H. B. Adams, The Germanic Origin
of New England Totvns, Saxon Tithing-Men in America, Norman
Constables in America, Village Communities of Cape Ann and Sa^
lem ; IL, x. Edward Channing, Town and County Government in
the English Colonies of North America ; IV., xi.-xii. Melville
Egleston, The Land System of the New England Colonies ; VII.,
vii.-ix. C. M. Andrews, The River Towns of Connecticut.
ORIGIN OF THE TOWNSHIP. 47
See also Howard's Local Constiiutiorud History of the United
States, Yol. i. '< Township, Hundred, and Shire," Baltimore,
1889, a work of extraordinary merit.
The great book on local self-government in England is Toul«
min Smith's The Parish, 2d ed., London, 1859. For the an-
cient history of the township, see Gomme's* Primitive Folk-Moots,
London, 1880 ; Gromme's Village Community, London, 1890 ;
Seebohm's English Village Community, Loudon, 1883 ; Nasse's
Agricultural Community of the Middle Ages, London, 1872 ; La-
veleye's Primitive Property, London, 1878; Phear's Aryan Village
in India and Ceylon, London, 1880; Hearn (of the University of
Melbourne, Australia), The Aryan Household, London & Mel-
bourne, 1879 ; and the following works of Sir Henry Maine :
Ancient Law, London, 1861; Village Communities in the East and
West, London, 1871; Early History of Institutions, London, 1875;
Early Law and Custom, London, 1883. All of Maine's works
are republished in New York. See also my American Political
Ideas, N. Y., 1886.
Gromme's Literature of Local Institutions, London, 1886, con-
tains an extensive bibliography of the subject, with valuable crit-
ical notes and comments.
CHAPTER m.
THE COUNTY.
§ 1. The County in its Beginnings.
It is now time for us to treat of the county, and we
may as well begin by considering its origin. In treat-
ing of the township we began by sketching it in its
fullest development, as seen in New England. With
the county we shall find it helpful to pursue a differ-
ent method and start at the beginning.
If we look at the maps of the states which make up
our Union, we see that they are all divided into coun-
ties (except that in Louisiana the corresponding divi-
sions are named parishes). The map of England
shows that country as similarly divided into coun-
ties.
If we ask why this is so, some people will tell us'
that it is convenient, for purposes of admin-
we have istration, to havc a state, or a kingdom, di-
vided into areas that are larger than single
towns. There is much truth in this. It is convenient.
If it were not so, counties would not have survived, so
as to make a part of our modern maps. Neverthe-
less, this is not the historic reason why we have the
particular kind of subdivisions known as counties.
We have them because our fathers and grandfathers
had them ; and thus, if we would find out the true
reason, we may as well go back to the ancient times
THE COUNTY IN ITS BEGINNINGS. 49
when our forefathers were establishing themselves in
England.
We have seen how the clan of our barbarous ances-
tors, when it became stationar^^, was established as the
town or township. But in those early times dans were
generally united more or less closely into tribes.
Among all primitive or barbarous races of men, so far
as we can make out, society is organized in cianstnd
tribes, and each tribe is made up of a num- *'^**®^
ber of clans or family groups. Now when our Eng-
lish forefathers conquered Britain they settled there as
clans and also as tribes. The clans became townships,
and the tribes became shires or counties ; that is to
say, the names were applied first to the people and
afterwards to the land they occupied. A few of the
oldest county names in England still show this plainly.
JEssex^ Middlesex^ and Sussex were originally " East
Saxons,*' " Middle Saxons," and '* South Saxons ; "
and on the eastern coast two tribes of Angles were
distinguished as " North folk " and " South folk," or
Norfolk and Suffolk, When you look on the map
and see the town of Icklingham in the county of Suf-
folk^ it means that this place was once known as the
" home " of the " Icklings " or " children of Ickel," a
clan which formed part of the tribe of " South folk."
In those days there was no such thing as a King-
dom of England ; there were only these
ffroups of tribes living side by side. Each nation, luu
tnbe had its leader, whose title was ealdor- can, grew
man^^ or " elder man. After a while, as tmion of
some tnbes mcreased in size and power,
their ealdormen took the title of kings. The little king-
doms coincided sometimes with a single shire, some-
^ The pronunciation was probably something like ydwl-dor^
man.
60 THE COUNTY.
times with two or more shires. Thus there was a king-
dom of Kent, and the North and South Folk were
combined in a kingdom of East Anglia. In course of
time numbers of shires combined into larger king-
doms, such as Northumbria, Mercia, and the West
Saxons ; and finally the king of the West Saxons
became king of all England, and the several shires
became subordinate parts or ^' shares " of the kingdom.
In England, therefore, the shires are older than the
nation. The shires were not made by dividing the
nation, but the nation was made by uniting the shires.
The English nation, like the American, grew out of
the union of little states that had once been independ-
ent of one another, but had many interests in com-
mon. For not less than three himdred years after all
England had been united under one king, these shires
retained their self-government almost as completely as
the several states of the American Union.^ A few
words about their government will not be wasted, for
they will help to throw light upon some things that
still form a part of our political and social life.
The shire was governed by the shire-mote (i. e.
"meeting"), which was a representative
Shire-mote, xi ri -I'li'ii
eaidorman, body. Liords 01 lauds, including abbots and
priors, attended it, as well as the reeve and
four selected men from each township. There were
thus the germs of both the kind of representation that
is seen in the House of Lords and the much more per-
fect kind that is seen in the House of Commons. Af-
ter a while, as cities and boroughs grew in importance,
they sent representative burghers to the shire-mote.
There were two presiding officers ; one was the ealdor*
man^ who was now appointed by the king ; the other
was the shire-reeve (i. e. " sheriff "), who was still
elected by the people and generally held office for life.
^ Chalmers, Local Government, p. 90.
THE COUNTY IN ITS BEGINNINGS. 61
This shire-mote was both a legislative body and a
court of justice. It not only made laws for the shire,
but it tried civil and priminal causes. After the Nor«
man Conquest some changes occurred. The shire now
began to be called by the French name "county,"
because of its analogy to the small pieces of territory
on the Continent that were governed by " coimts." ^
The shire-mote became known as the county The county
court, but cases coming before it were tried *^*^^
by the king's justices in eyre^ or circuit judges, who
went about from county to county to preside over
the judicial work. The o£Bice of ealdorman became
extinct. The sheriff was no longer elected by the
people for life, but appointed by the king for the term
of one year. This kept him strictly responsible to
the king. It was the sheriff's duty to see that the
county's share of the national taxes was duly col-
lected and paid ovei^ to the national treasury. The
sheriff also summoned juries and enforced the judg.
ments of the courts, and if he met with resistance in
so doing he was authoi*ized to call out a force of men,
known as the posse comitatus (i. e. "power of the
county "), and overcome all opposition. Another county
officer was the coroner^ or crowner^ so
called beckuse originally (in Alfred's time)
he was appointed by the Mng, and was especially the
crown officer in the county. Since the time of Ed-
ward I., however, coroners have been elected by the
people. Originally coroners held small courts of in-
quiry upon cases of wreckage, destructive fires, or
sudden death, but in course of time their jurisdiction
became confined to the last-named class of cases. If
^ Originally amUes^ or '' companions " of the king.
' This form of the word, sometimes supposed to be a yulga]>-
ism, is as correct as the other. See Skeat, Etym, Diet, s. v.
62 THE COUNTY.
a death occurred under circumstances in any way mys-
terious or likely to awaken suspicion, it was the business
of the coroner, assisted by not less than twelve jurors
(i. e. " sworn men "), to hold an inquest for the pur-
pose of ascertaining the cause of death. The coroner
could compel the attendance of witnesses and order a
medical examination of the body, and if there were
sufficient evidence to charge any person with murder
or manslaughter, the coroner could have such person
arrested and conmiitted for trial.
Another important county officer was the justice of
Justices of ^^ peace. Originally six were appointed by
the peace. ^^ crown in cach coimiy, but in later times
any number might be appointed. The office was
created by a series of statutes in the reign of Edward
III., in order to put a stop to the brigandage which
still flourished in England ; it was a common practice
for robbers to seize persons and hold them for ransom.^
By the last of these statutes, in 1362, the justices of
the peace in each county were to hold a court four
times in the year. The powers of this court, which
came to be known as the Quarter Sessions, were from
time to time increased by act of parliament, until it quite
The Quarter Supplanted the old county court. In modem
SeasioiiB. times the Quarter Sessions has become an
administrative body quite as much as a court. The
justices, who receive no salary, hold office for life, or
during good behaviour. They appoint the chief con-
stable of the county, who appoints the police. They
also take part in the supervision of highways and
bridges, asylums and prisons. Since the reign of
Henry VIII., the English county has had an officer
The lord- kuowu as the lord-lieutenant, who was once
lieutenant jeadcr of the county militia, but whose func
^ Longman's Life and Times of Edward I£I»^ yqU i* p. 901.
THE COUNTY IN ITS BEGINNINGS. 68
tions to-day are those of keeper of the records and
principal justice of the peace.
During the past five hundred years the English
county has gradually sunk from a self-governing com-
munity into an administrative district ; and in recent
times its boundaries have been so crossed and cris-
crossed with those of other administrative areas, such
as those of school-boards, sanitary boards, etc., that
very little of the old county is left in recognizable
shape. Most of this change has been effected since
the Tudor period. The first English settlers in Amer-
ica were familiar with the county as a district for the
administration of justice, and they brought Beginnings
with them coroners, sheriffs, and quarter ^^2^J^
sessions. In 1635 the General Court of Mas- ^""****-
sachusetts appointed four towns — Boston, Cam-
bridge, Salem, and Ipswich — as places where courts
should be held quarterly. In 1643 the colony, which
then included as much of New Hampshire as was set-
tled, was divided into four " shires," — Suffolk, Essex,
Middlesex, and Norfolk, the latter lying then to the
northward and including the New Hampshire towns.
The militia was then organized, perhaps without con-
sciousness of the analogy, after a very old English
fashion ; the militia of each town formed a company,
and the companies of the shire formed a regiment.
The county was organized from the beginning as a
judicial district, with its court-house, jail, and sheriff.
After 1697 the court, held by the justices of the peace,
was called the Court of General Sessions. It could
try criminal causes not involving the penalty of death
or banishment, and civil causes in which the value at
stake was less than forty shillings. It also had con-
trol over highways going from town to town ; and it
apportioned the coimty taxes among the several towns.
54 THE COUNTY^
The JTistices and sheriff were appointed by the go^
emor, as in England by the king.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. Why do we have counties in the United States ? Contrast
the popular reason with the historic.
2. What relation did the tribe hold to the dan among our an-
cestors ?
3. In time what did the clans and the tribes severally become ?
4. Show how old county names in England throw light on the
county development.
5. Trace the growth of the English nation in accordance with
the following outline : —
a. Each tribe and its leader.
h, A powerful tribe and its leader.
c. The relation of a little kingdom to the shiie.
d. The iinal union under one king.
e. The relative ages of the shire and the nation.
6. Give an account (1) of the shire-mote, (2) of the two kinds
of representation in it, (3) of its presiding officers, and
(4) of its two kinds of duties.
*j. Let the pupil make written analyses or outlines of the fol-
lowing topics, to be used by him in presenting the topics
orally, or to be passed in to the teacher : —
a. What changes took place in the government of the shire
after the Norman Conquest ?
h. Trace the development of the coroner's office.
c. Give an account of the justices of the peace and the courts
held by them.
d. Show what applications the English settlers in Massachu-
setts made of their knowledge of the English county.
§ 2. The Modern County in Massachusetts^
The modem county system of Massachusetts may
now be very briefly described. The county, like the
town, is a corporation ; it can hold property and sue or
be sued. It builds the court-house and jail, and keeps
them in repair. The town in which these buildings
are placed is called, as in England, the shire town.
In each county there are three commissioners,
MODERN COUNTY IN MASSACHUSETTS. 65
elected by the people. Their term of service is three
years, and one goes out each year. These commis-
sioners represent the county in law-suits, as the select-
men represent the town. They " apportion the county com-
county taxes among the towns ; " " lay out, "**»*o™»^
alter, and discontinue highways within the county;"
''have charge of houses of correction;" and erect
and keep in repair the coimty buildings.^
The revenues of the county are derived partly from
taxation and partly from the payment of fines and
costs in the courts. These revenues are re- county
ceived and disbursed by the county treasurer, *™»^"*'-
who is elected by the people for a term of three years.
The Superior Court of the state holds at least two
sessions annually in each county, and tries civil and
criminal causes. There is also in each county a pro-
bate court vdth jurisdiction over all matters
relating to vdlls, administration of estates,
and appointment of guardians ; it also acts as a court
of insolvency. The custody of vnlls and documents
relating to the business of this court is in the hands
of an officer knovm as the register of probate, who is
elected by the people for a term of five years.
To preserve the records of all land-titles and trans-
fers of land vrithin the county, all deeds and mort-
gafices are reristered in an office in the shire
7 11 . 1 . 11 1 Shire town
town, usually within or attached to the court- and court-
house. The register of deeds is an officer
elected by the people for a term of three years. In
counties where there is much business there may be
more than one.
Justices of the peace are appointed by the governor
for a term of seven years, and the appoint- justices of
ment may be renewed. Their functions have ^^ '^*®***"
* Martin's CivU Government, p. 197.
56 THE COUNTY. ^
been greatly curtailed, and now amotuit to little more
than administering oaths, and in some cases issuing
warrants and taking bail. They may join persons in
marriage, and, when specially commissioned as ^^ trial
justices," have criminal jurisdiction over simdry petty
offences.
The sheriff is elected by the people for a term of
three years. He may appoint deputies, for whom he
is responsible, to assist him in his work. He must
attend all county courts, and the meetings of the
county commissioners whenever required.
He must inflict, either personally or by dep-
uty, the sentence of the court, whether it be fine, im-
prisonment, or death. He is responsible for the preser-
vation of the peace within the county, and to this end
must pursue criminals and may arrest disorderly per-
sons. If he meets with resistance he may call out
the posse comitatus ; if the resistance grows into
insurrection he may apply to the governor and obtain
the aid of the state militia ; if the insurrection proves
too formidable to be thus dealt with, the governor
may in his behalf apply to the president of the United
States for aid from the regular army. In this way
the force that may be drawn upon, if necessary, for
the suppression of disorder in a single locality, is
practically unlimited and irresistible.
We have now obtained a clear outline view of the
township and county in themselves and in their rela-
tion to one another, with an occasional glimpse of their
relation to the state; in so far, at least, as such a
view can be gained from a reference to the history of
England and of Massachusetts. We must next trace
the development of local government in other parts of
the United States ; and in doing so we can advance
at somewhat quicker pace, not because our subject
THE OLD VIRGINIA COUNTY. 67
becomes in any wise less important or less interesting,
but because we have already marked out the ground
and said things of general application which ¥rill not
need to be said over again.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
Give an account of the modem county in Massachusetts under
the following heads : —
1 . The county a corporation.
2. The county commissioners and their duties.
3. The county treasurer and his duties.
4. The courts held in a county.
5. The shire town and che court-house.
6. The register of deeds and his duties.
7. Justices of the peace and trial justices.
8. The sheriff and his duties.
9. The force at the sheriff's disposal to suppress disorder.
§ 3. TTie Old Virginia County,
By common consent of historians, the two most dis-
tinctive and most characteristic lines of development
which English forms of government have followed, in
propagating themselves throughout the United States,
are the two lines that have led through New England
on the one hand and through Virginia on the other.
We have seen what shape local government assumed
in New England ; let us now observe what shape it
assumed in the Old Dominion.
The first point to be noticed in the early settlement
of Virginia is that people did not live so near together
as in New England. This was because tobacco, culti-
vated on large estates, was a source of wealth. To-
bacco drew settlers to Virginia as in later
days gold drew settlers to California and sparsely
Australia. They came not in organized
groups or congregations, but as a multitude of indi-
viduals. Land was granted to individuals, and some-
68 THE COUNTY.
times these grants were of enormous extent. ^^ Jolm
Boiling, who died in 1757, left an estate of 40,000
acres, and this is not mentioned as an extraordinary
amount of land for one man to own."^ From an
early period it was customary to keep these great
estates together by entailing them, and this continued
until entails were abolished in 1776 through the influ*
ence of Thomas Jefferson.
A glance at the map of Virginia shows to what a
remarkable degree it is intersected by navigable rivers.
This fact made it possible for plantations, even at a
Absence of ^^^g distance from the coast, to have each
^""^ its own private wharf, where a ship from
England could unload its cargo of tools, cloth, or
furniture, and receive a cargo of tobacco in return.
As the planters were thus supplied with most of the
necessaries of life, there was no occasion for the kind
of trade that builds up towns. Even in compara-
tively recent times the development of town life in
Virginia has been very slow. In 1880, out of 246
cities and towns in the United States with a popula-
tion exceeding 10,000, there were only six in Virginia.
The cultivation of tobacco upon large estates caused
a great demand for cheap labour, and this was supplied
partly by bringing nsgro slaves from Africa, partly
by bringing criminals from English jails. The latter
were sold into slavery for a limited term of
^^^ years, and were known as " indentured white
servants." So great was the demand for labour that
it became customary to kidnap poor friendless wretches
on the streets of seaport towns in England and ship
them off to Virginia to be sold into servitude. At
first these white servants were more numerous than
1 Edward Chanuing, "Town and County Grovemment," in
Johns Hopkins University Studies, yol. ii. p. 467.
THE OLD VIRGINIA COUNTY, 69
the negroes, bat before the end of the seventeenth
century the blacks had come to be much the more nu-
merous.
In this rural community the owners of plantations
came from the same classes of society as the settlers
of New England ; they were for the most part country
squires and yeomen. But while in New Eng-
land there was no lower class of society tion of aet-
■ _ tiers.
sharply marked off from the upper, on the
other hand in Virginia there was an insurmountable
distinction between the owners of plantations and the
so-called " mean whites " or " white trash." This
class was originally formed of men and women who
had been indentured white servants, and was increased
by such shiftless people as now and then found their
way to the colony, but could not win estates or ob-
tain social recognition. With such a sharp division
between classes, an aristocratic type of society was
developed in Virginia as naturally as a democratic
type was developed in New England.
In Virginia there were no town-meetings. The dis-
tances between plantations cooperated with the dis-
tinction between classes to prevent the growth of such
an institution. The English parish, with its Virginia par-
churchwardens and vestry and clerk, was re- ***"*•
produced in Virginia under the same name, but with
some noteworthy peculiarities. If the whole body of
ratepayers had assembled in vestry meeting, to enact
by-laws and assess taxes, the course of development
would have been like that of the New England town-
meeting. But instead of this the vestry, which exer-
cised the chief authority in the parish, was composed
of twelve chosen men. This was not government by a
primary assembly, it was representative government.
At first the twelve vestrymen were elected by the peo-
60 THE COUNTY.
pie of the parish, and thus resembled the selectmen
of New £ngland ; but after a while ^^ they obtained
the power of filling vacancies in their own
a doM number," so that they became what is called
corpora aa, ^ ^^^ closc Corporation," and the people had
nothing to do with choosing them. Strictly speaking,
that was not representative government ; it was a step
on the road that leads towards oligarchical or despotic
government.
It was the vestry, thus constituted, that apportioned
the parish taxes, appointed the churchwardens, pre-
Powen of sented the minister for induction into office,
the vestry, g^^ actcd as ovcrsccrs of the poor. The
minister presided in all vestry meetings. His salary
was paid in tobacco, and in 1696 it was fixed by law
at 16,000 pounds of tobacco yearly. In many parishes
the churchwardens were the collectors of the parish
taxes. The other officers, such as the sexton and the
parish clerk, were appointed either by the minister or
by the vestry.
With the local government thus administered, we
see that the larger part of the people had little di-
rectly to do. Nevertheless in these small neighbour-
hoods government was in full sight of the people. Its
proceedings went on in broad daylight and were sus-
tained by public sentiment. As Jefferson said, " The
vestrymen are usually the most discreet farmers, so
distributed through the parish that every part of it
may be under the immediate eye of some one of them.
They are well acquainted with the details and economy
of private life, and they find sufficient inducements to
execute their charge well, in their philanthropy, in the
approbation of their neighbours, and the distinction
which that gives them." ^
^ See Howard, Local Constitutional History of the United Statetf
vol. i. p. 122.
THE OLD VIRGINIA COUNTY. 61
The difEerence, however, between the New England
township and the Virginia parish, in respect of self-
government, was striking enough. We have now to
note a further difference. In New England, as we
have seen, the township was the unit of representation
in the colonial legislature ; but in Virginia the parish
was not the unit of representation. The county was
that unit. In the colonial legislature of Vir- T^e county
ginia the representatives sat not for parishes, o "repJeSS
but for counties. The difference is very sig- ^^^^^
nificant. As the political life of New England was
in a manner built up out of the political life of the
towns, so the political life of Virginia was built up
out of the political life of the counties. This was
partly because the vast plantations were not grouped
about a compact village nucleus like the small farms
at the North, and partly because there was not in Vir-
ginia that Puritan theory of the church according to
which each congregation is a self-governing democ-
racy. • The conditions which made the New England
town-meeting were absent. The only alternative was
some kind of representative government, and for this
the county was a small enough area. The county in
Virginia was much smaller than in Massachusetts or
Connecticut. In a few instances the county consisted
of only a single parish ; in some cases it was divided
into two parishes, but oftener into three or more.
In Virginia, as in England and in New England,
the county was an area for the administration of justice.
There were usually in each county eight jus-
tices of the peace, and their court was the court was
counterpart of the Quarter Sessions in Eng- close corpo-
land. They were appointed by the governor,
but it was customary for them to nominate candidates
for the governor to appoint, so that practically the
62 THE COUNTY.
court filled its own vacancies and was a close corpora-
tion, like the parish vestry. Such an arrangement
tended to keep the general supervision and control of
things in the hands of a few families.
This county court usually met as often as once a
month in some convenient spot answering to the shite
town of England or New England. More often than
not the place originally consisted of the court-house
and very little else, and was named accordingly from
the name of the county, as Hanover Court House or
Fairfax Court House ; and the small shire towns that
have grown up in such spots often retain these names
The oounty ^ ^^^ present day. Such names occur com-
CoiSrt' monly in Virginia, West Virginia, and South
House. Carolina, very rarely in Kentucky, North
Carolina, Alabama, Ohio, and nowhere else in the
United States.^ Their number has diminished from
the tendency to omit the phrase " Court House," leav-
ing the name of the county for that of the shire town,
as for example in Culpeper, Va. In New England the
process of naming has been just the reverse ; as in
Hartford Coimty, Conn., or Worcester County, Mass.,
which have taken their names from the shire towns.
In this, as in so many cases, whole chapters of history
are wrapped up in geographical names.^
The county court in Virginia had jurisdiction in
criminal actions not involving peril of life or limb,
and in civil suits where the sum at stake exceeded.
^ In Mitchell's Atlas, 1883, the niimher of cases is in Ya. 3^
W. Va. 13, S. C. 16, N. C. 2, Ala. 1, Ky. 1, Ohio, 1.
3 A few of the oldest Virginia counties, organized as such in
1634, had arisen from the spreading and thinning of single set-
tlements originally intended to he cities and named accordingly.
Hence the curious names (at first sight unintelligihle) of ** James
City County,'' and " Charles City County."
THE OLD VIRGINIA COUNTY. 68
twenty-five shillings. Smaller suits could be tried by
a single justice. The court also had charge powenof
of the probate and administration of wills. ****«®'"^
The court appointed its own clerk, who kept the
county records. It superintended the construction and
repair of bridges and highways, and for this purpose
divided the county into ^^ precincts," and appointed
annually for each precinct a highway surveyor. The
court also seems to have appointed constables, oue for
each precinct. The justices could themselves act as
coroners, but annually two or more coroners for each
parish were appointed by the governor. As we have
seen' that the parish taxes — so much for salaries of
minister and clerk, so much for care of church build-
ings, so much for relief of the poor, etc. — were com-
puted and assessed by the vestry ; so the county taxes,
for care of court-house and jail, roads and bridges,
coroner's fees, and allowances to the representatives
sent to the colonial legislature, were computed and
assessed by the county court. The general taxes for
the colony were estimated by a committee of the legis-
lature, as well as the county's share of the colony
tax. The taxes for the county, and sometimes the
taxes for the parish also, were collected by the sheriff.
They were usually paid, not in money, but in tobacco ;
and the sheriff was the custodian of this _ ^ _,^
, The sheriff.
tobacco, responsible for its proper disposal.
The sheriff was thus not only the officer for executing
the judgments of the court, but he was also county
treasurer and collector, and thus exercised powers al-
most as great as those of the sheriff in England in the
twelfth century. He also presided over elections for
representatives to the legislature. It is interesting to
observe how this very important officer was chosen.
^ Each year the court presented the names of three of
64 THE COUNTY.
its members to the governor, who appointed one, gen-
erally the senior justice, to be the sheriff of the county
for the ensuing year." ^ Here again we see this close
corporation, the county court, keeping the control of
things within its own hands.
One other important county officer needs to be men-
tioned. We have seen that in early New England
each town had its train-band or company of militia,
and that the companies in each county united to form
the county regiment. In Virginia it was just the other
way. Each county raised a certain number of troops,
and because it was not convenient for the men to go
many miles from home in assembUng for purposes of
drill, the county was subdivided into military districts,
each with its company, according to rules laid down
by the governor. The military command in each
The county county was vcstcd in the county lieutenant,
lieutenaat. ^ji officer answering in many respects to the
lord lieutenant of the English shire at that period.
Usually he was a member of the governor's coimcil,
and as such exercised sundry judicial functions. He
bore the honorary title of " colonel," and was to some
extent regarded as the governor's deputy ; but in later
times his duties were confined entirely to military
matters.^
If now we sum up the contrasts between local gov-
ernment in Virginia and that in New England, we
observe : —
1. That in New England the management of local
afifairs was mostly in the hands of town officers, the
^ Edward Channing, op. cU, p. 478.
3 For an excellent account of local goyermnent in Yirginia
before the Revolution, see Howard, Local Const Hist of the U»
S.9 vol. i. pp. 388-407 ; also Edward Ingle in Johns Hcplans
Ufwo* Studies, III., ii.-iii.
THE OLD VIRGINIA COUNTY. 65
county being superadded for certain purposes, chiefly
judicial ; while in Virginia the management was chiefly
in the hands of county officers, though certain func-
tions, chiefly ecclesiastical^ were reserved to the parish.
2. That in New England the local magistrates were
almost always, with the exception of justices, chosen
by the people; while in Virginia, though some of
them were nominally appointed by the governor, yet
in practice they generally contrived to appoint them-
selves — in other words the local boards practically
fllled their own vacancies and were self -perpetuating.
These differences are striking and profound. There
can be no doubt that, as Thomas Jefferson clearly
saw, in the long run the interests of political Kberty
are much safer under the New England system than
imder the Virginia system. Jefferson saidj jofferton'a
" Those wards, called townships in New Eng- JSJ^^'
land, are the vital principle of their govern- 8o^«"^°^*'
ments, and have proved themselves the wisest inven-
tion ever devised by the wit of man for the perfect
exercise of self-government, and for its preservation.^
• . . As Cato, then, concluded every speech with the
words Carthago ddenda est^ so do I every opinion
with the injunction: ^Divide the counties into
wardsl*"^
We must, however, avoid the mistake of making
too much of this contrast. As already hinted, in
those rural societies where people generally knew one
another, its effects were not so far-reaching as they
would be in the more complicated society of to-day.
Even though Virginia had not the town-meeting, " it
had its familiar court-day,'* which " was a ucontt-
holiday for all the coimtry-side, especially in ^'^•"
the fall and spring. From all directions came in the
^ Jefferwm's Works, viL la > /</., vi. 544.
66 THE COUNTY.
people on horseback, in wagons, and afoot. On the
court-house green assembled, in indiscriminate confu-
sion, people of all classes, — the hunter from the back-
woods, the owner of a few acres, the grand proprietor,
and the grinning, heedless negro. Old debts were set-
tled, and new ones made ; there were auctions, trans-
fers of property, and, if election times were near,
stump-speaking." ^
For seventy years or more before the Declaration of
Independence the matters of general public concern,
about which stump speeches were made on Virginia
court-days, were very similar to those that were dis-
cussed in Massachusetts town-meetings when represen-
tatives were to be chosen for the legislature. Such
questions generally related to some real or alleged
encroachment upon popular liberties by the royal gov-
ernor, who, being appointed and sent from beyond sea,
was apt to have ideas and purposes of his own that
conflicted with those of the people. This perpetual
antagonism to the governor, who represented British
imperial interference with American local self-govern-
ment, was an excellent schooling in political liberty,
alike for Virginia and for Massachusetts. When the
stress of the Revolution came, these two leading colo-
nies cordially supported each other, and their political
characteristics were reflected in the kind of achieve-
ments for which each was especially distinguished*
The Virginia system, concentrating the administration
of local affairs in the hands of a few county families,
was eminently favourable for developing
liflc in great skilful and vifforous leadership. And while
leaders.
in the history of Massachusetts during the
Revolution we are chiefly impressed with the wonderful
degree in which the mass of the people exhibited the
^ Ingle, he, ctf.
THE OLD VIRGINIA COUNTY. 67
kind of political training that nothing in the world ex-
cept the habit of parliamentary discussion can impart;
on the other hand, Virginia at that time gave us —
in Washington, Jefferson, Henry, Madison, and Mar-
shall, to mention no others — such a group of consum-
mate leaders as the world has seldom seen equalled.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. Why wafl Virginia more sparsely settled than Massachusetts ?
2. Why was it that towns were built up more slowly in Virginia
than in Massachusetts ?
3. How was the great demand for labour in Virginia met ?
4. What distinction of classes naturally arose ?
5. Contrast the type of society thus developed in Virginia with
that developed in New England.
6. Compare the Virginia parish in its earlier government with
the English parish from which it was naturally copied.
7. Show how the vestry became a close corporation.
8. Who were usually chosen as vestrymen, and what were their
powers?
9. Compare Virginia's unit of representation. in the colonial
legislature with that of Massachusetts, and give the rea-
son for the difference.
10. Describe the county court, showing in particular how it be-
came a close corporation.
11. Bring out some of the history wrapped up in the names of
county seats.
12. What were the chief powers of the county court ?
13. Describe the assessment of the various taxes.
14. What were the sheriff's duties ?
15* Describe the organization and command of the militia in
each county.
16. Sam up the differences between local government in Virginia
and that in New England (1) as to the management of
local affairs and (2) as to the choice of local ofQcers.
17' What did Jefferson think of the principle of township gov-
ernment ?
18. What was the equivalent in Virginia of the New England
town-meeting ?
19* What was the value of thb frequent assembling ?
20. What schooling in political liberty before the Revolution did
Virginia and Massachusetts alike have ?
68 THE COUNTY.
21. What was an impressive feature of the New England
system ?
22. What was an impressive feature of the Virginia system?
SUOGESTIYE QX7ESTI0NS AND DIBECTI0N8.
1. How many counties are there in your state ?
2. Name and place them if the numher is smalL
3. In what county do you live ?
4. Give its dimensions. Are they satisfactory ? Why ?
5. Give its boundaries.
6. Is there anything interesting in the meaning or origin of its
name ?
7. How many towns and cities does it contain ?
8. What is the county seat ? Is it conveniently situated ? Bei^
sons for thinking so ?
9. If convenient, visit any county building, note the uses to
which it is put, and report such facts as may be thus
found out.
10. Obtain a deed, no matter how old, and answer these ques-
tions about it : —
a. Is it recorded ? If so, where ?
5. Would it be easy for you to find the record ?
c. Why should such a record be kept ?
d. What ofQcer has charge of such records ?
e. What sort of work must he and his assistants do ?
f. The place of such records is called what ?
g. What sort of facilities for the public should such a place
have ? What safety precautions should be observed
there ?
h. Why should the county keep such records rather than the
city or the town ?
t. Is there a record of the deed by which the preceding owner
came into possession of the property ?
j. What sort of title did the first owner have ? Is there
any record of it ? Was the first owner Indian or Euro-
pean?
(The teacher might obtain a deed and base a class exercise
upon it. It is easy with a deed for a text to lead pupils to see
the common-sense basis of an important county institution, and
thereafter to give very sensible views as to what it should be,
even if it is not fully known what it is.)
1 1. Is there a local court for your town or city ?
THE OLD VIRGINIA COUNTY. 69
12. ll=low do its cases compare in magnitude with those tried at
the county seat ?
13. Xf a man steals and is prosecuted, who becomes the plaintiff ?
14- Xf a man owes and is sued for debt, who becomes the plain-
tiff?
15- AVhat is a criminal action ?
16. VVhat is a civil action ?
17- VVhat is the result to the defendant in the former case, if he
is convicted ?
18. ^What is the result to the defendant in the latter case, if the
decision is against him ?
19- Xs lying a crime or a sin ? May it ever become a crime ?
20. ^^re courts of any service to the vast numbers who are never
brought before them ? Why ?
21 • I^y good citizens always keep out of the courts if they
choose ? Is it their duty always to keep out of them ?
22. Is there any aversion among people that you know to being
brought before the courts ? "^Vby ?
23. ^What is the purpose of a jail ? Is this purpose realized in
fact?
24. Should a disturbance of a serious nature break out in your
town, whose immediate duty would it be to quell it ?
Suppose this duty should prove too difficult to perform,
then what ?
25* ^Vhat is the attitude of good citizenship towards ofBcers who
are trying to enforce the laws ? What is the attitude of
good citizenship if the laws are not satisfactory or if the
officers are indiscreet in enforcing them ?
26. Suppose a man of property dies and leaves a will, what trou-
bles are possible about the disposal of his property ? Sup-
pose he leaves no will, what troubles are possible ?
Whose duty is it to exercise control over such matters
and hold people up to legal and honourable conduct in
them?
27* What is an executor ? What is an administrator ?
2o. If parents die, whose duty is it to care for their children ?
If property is left to such children, are they free to use
it as they please ? What has the county to do with such
oases?
^ Bow much does your town or city contribute towards county
expenses ? How does this amount compare with that
raised by other towns in the county ?
70 THE COUNTY.
30. Giye the organization of vonr conntj goyemment.
31. Would it be better for the towns to do themseWes the wor^
now done for them by the coontj ?
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.
§ 1. The Countt in its Beginnings. This subject is
treated in connection with the township in several of the books
above mentioned. See especially Howard, Local Const, Hist,
§ 2. The Modern County in Massachusetts. There is
a good account in Martin's Text Book above mentioned.
§ 3. The Old Virginia County. The best account is in
J. H. U, Studies, III., ii.~iii. Edward Ingle, Virginia Local /»•
stitutions. See also my Old Virginia and her Neighbours, ii. 35-44.
In dealing with the questions on page 69, both teachers and
pupils will find Dole's Talks about Law (Boston, 1887) extremely
valuable and helpful.
CHAPTER IV.
TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
§ 1. Various Local Systems.
We have now completed our outline sketch of town
and county government as illustrated in New England
on the one hand and in Virginia on the other. There
are some important points in the early history of local
government in other portions of the original thirteen
states, to which we must next call attention ; and then
we shall be prepared to understand the manner in
which our great western country has been organized
under civil government. We must first say something
about South Carolina and Maryland.
South Carolina was settled from half a century to a
century later than Massachusetts and Vir-
mia. and by two distinct streams of immi- in south
. mi 1-11 1 Carolina.
gration. 1 he lowlands near the coast were
settled by Englishmen and by French Huguenots, but
the form of government was purely English. There
were parishes, as in Virginia, but popular election
played a greater part in them. The vestrymen were
elected yearly by all the taxpayers of the parish.
The minister was also elected by his people, and after
1719 each parish sent its representatives to the colo-
nial legislature, though in a few instances two par^
ishes were joined together for the purpose of choosing
representatives. The system was thus more demo-
72 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
cratic than in Virginia ; and in this connection it ifl
worth while to observe that parochial libraries and
free schools were established as early as 1712, much
earlier than in Virginia.
During the first half of the eighteenth century a
very different stream of immi^ation. coming mostly
along the slope of the Alleghanies from Virginia and
Pennsylvania, and consisting in great part of Gei^
mans, Scotch Highlanders, and Scotch-Irish, peopled
the upland western regions of South Carolina. For
some time this territory had scarcely any civil organi-
zation. It was a kind of " wild West," There were
as yet no counties in the colony. There was just one
The back sheriff f or the whole colony, who " held his
country. officc by patent from the crown." ^ A court
sat in Charleston, but the arm of justice was hardly
long enough to reach offenders in the mountains. *' To
punish a horse-thief or prosecute a debtor one was
sometimes compelled to travel a distance of several
hundred miles, and be subjected to all the dangers and
delays incident to a wild country." When people
cannot get justice in what in civilized countries is the
regular way, they will get it in some irregular way.
So these mountaineers began to form themselves into
bands known as " regulators," quite like the " vigi-
lance committees " formed for the same purposes in
California a hundred years later. For thieves and
murderers the " regulators " provided a speedy trial,
and the nearest tree served as a gallows.
In order to put a stop to this lynch law, the legisla-
ture in 1768 divided the back country into districts,
_ ,. each with its sheriff and court-house, and the
The ai»-
trictBys- judges were sent on circuit through these
districts. The upland region with its dis-
^ B. J. Ramage, in Johns Hopkins Univ. Studies^ I., zii.
VARIOUS LOCAL SYSTEMS. 78
tricts was thus very differently organized from the
lowland region with its parishes, and the effect was for
a while abnost like dividing South Carolina into two
states. At first the districts were not allowed to
choose their own sheriffs, but in course of time they
acquired this privilege. It was difficult to apportion
the representation in the state legislature so as to bat
ance evenly the districts in the west against the par-
ishes in the east, and accordingly there was much
dissatisfaction, especially in the west which did not
get its fair share. In 1786 the capital was moved
from Charleston to Columbia as a concession to the
back country, and in 1808 a kind of compromise was
effected, in such wise that the uplands secured a per-
manent majority in the house of representatives, while
the lowlands retained control of the senate. The two
sections had each its separate state treasurer, and this
kind of double government lasted until the Civil
War.
At the close of the war '' the parishes were abol-
ished and the district system was extended to the low
country." But soon afterward, by the new j^^ ^^^^
constitution of 1868, the districts were abol- c^^^
ished and the state was divided into 34 coun- *^""^-
ties, each of which sends one senator to the state sen-
ate, while they send representatives in proportion to
their population. In each county the people elect
three county commissioners, a school commissioner, a
sheriff, a judge of probate, a clerk, and a coroner. In
one respect the South Carolina county is quite pe-
culiar : it has no organization for judicial purposes.
" The counties, like their institutional predecessor the
district, are grouped into judicial circuits, and a judge
is elected by the legislature for each circuit. Trial
justices are appointed by the governor for a term of
two years."
74 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
This system, like the simple county system every-
where, is a representative system ; the people take no
direct part in the management of affairs. In one re-
spect it seems obviously to need amendment. In states
where county government has grown up naturally,
after the Virginia fashion, the county is apt to be
much smaller than in states where it is simply a dis-
trict embracing several township governments. Thus
the average size of a county in Massachusetts is 557
square miles, and in Connecticut 594 square miles ;
but in Virginia it is only 383 and in Kentucky 307
square miles. In South Carolina, however, where the
county did not grow up of itself, but has been en-
acted, so to speak, by a kind of afterthought, it has
been made too large altogether. The average area of
the coijnty in South Carolina is about 1,000 square
miles. Some counties are much larger. Col-
ties are too Ictou couuty in 1890 could hold the whole
state of Rhode Island, with 600 square miles
to spare. Such an area is much too extensive for local
self-government. Its different portions are too far
apart to understand each other's local wants, or to act
efficiently toward supplying them ; and roads, bridges,
and free schools suffer accordingly. An unsuccessful
attempt has been made to reduce the size of the coun-
ties. But what seems perhaps more likely to happen
is the practical division of the counties into school dis-
tricts, and the gradual development of these school
districts into something like self-governing townships.
To this very interesting point we shall again have
occasion to refer.
We come now to Maryland. The early history of
local institutions in this state is a fascinating subject
of study. None of the American colonies had a
more distinctive character of its own, or reproduced
VARIOUS LOCAL SYSTEMS. 76
old English usages in a more curious fashion. There
was much in colonial Maryland, with its lords of the
manor, its bailiffs and seneschals, its courts baron and
courts leet, to remind one of the England of the thir-
teenth century^ But of these ancient institutions,
long since extinct, there is but one that needs to be
mentioned in the present connection. In Maryland
the earliest form of civil community was called, not a
parish or township, but a hundred. This The hundred
curious designation is often met with in ^^y^»^
English history, and the institution which it describes,
though now almost everywhere extinct, was once
almost universal among men. It will be remembered
that the oldest form of civil society, which is still to
be found among some barbarous races, was that in
which families were organized into clans and clans
into tribes ; and we saw that among our forefathers
in England the dwelling-place of the clan became the
township, and the home of the tribe became the shire
or county. Now, in nearly all primitive societies that
have been studied, we find a group that is larger than
the clan but smaller than the tribe, — or, in other
words, intermediate between clan and tribe. Scholars
usually call this group by its Greek name, ^jj^^^^tj^.
phratrv. or " brotherhood," for it was known erhooda, and
f 1 . • Vi 1 tribes.
long ago that in ancient ureece clans were
grouped into brotherhoods and brotherhoods into
tribes. Among uncivilized people all over the world
we find this kind of grouping. For example, a tribe
of North American Indians is regularly made up of
phratries, and the phratries are made up of clans ;
and, strange as it might at first seem, a good many
half-understood features of early Greek and Roman
society have had much light thrown upon them from
the study of the usages of Cherokees and Mohawks.
76 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
Wherever men have been placed, the problem of form-
ing civil society has been in its main outlines the same;
and in its earlier stages it has been approached in
pretty much the same way by all.
The ancient Romans had the brotherhood, and
called it a cuHa. The Koman people were organized
in clans, curies, and tribes. But for military purposes
the curia was called a century^ because it furnished a
quota of one hundred men to the army. The word
century originally meant a company of a hundred
Origin of the ni^n, and it was only by a figure of speech
hundred. ^j^^ j^ af tcrward came to mean a period of
a hundred years. Now among all Germanic peoples,
including the English, the brotherhood seems to have
been called the hundred. Our English forefathers
seem to have been organized, like other barbarians, in
clans, brotherhoods, and tribes ; and the brotherhood
was in some way connected with the furnishing a hun-
dred warriors to the host. In the tenth century we
find England covered with small districts known as
hundreds. Several townships together made a hun-
dred, and several hundreds together made a shire.
The hundred was chiefly notable as the smallest area
for the administration of justice. The hundred court
The hundred was a representative body, composed of the
court. lords of lands or their stewards, with the
reeve and four selected men and the parish priest from
each township. There was a chief magistrate for the
hundred, known originally as the hundredman, but
after the Norman conquest as the high constable.
By the thirteenth century the importance of the
hundred had much diminished. The need for any
such body, intermediate between township Decay of the
and county, ceased to be felt, and the f unc- ^™«*^*^'
tions of the hundred were gradually absorbed by the
VARIOUS LOCAL SYSTEMS. 77
county. Almost everywhere in England, by the reign
of Elizabeth, the hundred had fallen into decay. It
is curious that its name and some of its peculiarities
should have been brought to America, and should in
one state have remained to the present day. Some of
the early settlements in Virginia were called hun-
dreds, but they were practically nothing more than
parishes, and the name soon became obsolete, except
upon the map, where we still see, for example, Ber-
muda Hundred. But in Maryland the hundred flour-
ished and became the political unit, like the township
in New England. The hundred was the militia dis-
trict, and the district for the assessment of taxes. In
the earliest times it was also the representative dis-
trict ; delegates to the colonial legislature sat „ ,
i»-iii -Tk • ^r»^ A 1 ' 1 1 Hundred-
tor hundreds. But m 1654 this was chansred, meetings in
and representatives were elected by counties.
The officers of the Maryland hundred were the high
constable, the commander of militia, the tobacco-
viewer, the overseer of roads, and the assessor of taxes.
The last-mentioned officer was elected by the people,
the others were all appointed by the governor. The
hundred had also its assembly of all the people, which
was in many respects like the New England town-
meeting. These hundred-meetings enacted by-laws,
leyied taxes, appointed committees, and often exhib-
ited a vigorous political life. But after the Kevolu-
tion they fell into disuse, and in 1824 the hundred
became extinct in Maryland ; its organization was
swallowed up in that of the county.
In Delaware, however, the hundred remains to this
day. There it is simply an imperfectly developed
township, but its relations with the county, The hundred
as they have stood with but little change i"»«i»'~"-
sbce 1743, are very interesting. Each hundred used
78 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
to choose its own assessor of taxes, and every year in
the month of November the assessors from all the
hundreds used to meet in the county court-house, along
with three or more* justices of the peace and eight
grand jurors, and assess the taxes for the ensuing
year. A month later they assembled again, to hear
complaints from persons who considered themselves
overtaxed ; and having disposed of this business, they
proceeded to appoint collectors, one for each hundred.
This county assembly was known as the ** court of
levy and appeal," or more briefly as the levy court.
It appointed the county treasurer, the road
court, or commissiouers, and the overseers of the
representa-
tive county poor, Siucc 1793 the levy court has been
assembly. , , ,
composed of special commissioners chosen
by popular vote, but its essential character has not
been altered. As a thoroughly representative body,
it reminds one of the county courts of the Plantagenet
period.
We next come to the great middle colonies, Pennsyl-
vania and New York. The most noteworthy feature
of local ffovemment in Pennsylvania was the
The old 1 1 . P «» 1 1
Pennsyiva- general election of county omcers by popular
vote. The county was the unit of represen-
tation in the colonial legislature, and on election days
the people of the county elected at the same time their
sheriffs, coroners, assessors, and county commissioners.
In this respect Pennsylvania furnished a model which
has been followed by most of the states since the Bev-
olution, as regards the county governments. It is also
to be noted that before the Revolution, as Pennsyl-
vania increased in population, the townships began to
participate in the work of government, each township
choosing its overseers of the poor, highway surveyors,
and inspectors of elections.^
^ Town-meetings were not quite unkiiQ'wxi in PennsjlTania ;
VARIOUS LOCAL SYSTEMS. 79
New York had from the very beginning the rudi-
ments of an excellent system of local self-government.
The Dutch villages had their assemblies, which under
the English rule were developed into town-
meetings, though with less ample powers ingsinNew
than those of New England. The govern-
ing body of the New York town consisted of the con-
stable and eight overseers, who answered in most
respects to the selectmen of New England* Four of
the overseers were elected each year in town-meeting,
and one of* the retiring overseers was at the same
time elected constable. In course of time the elec-
tive offices came to include assessors and collectors,
town clerk, highway surveyors, fence-viewers, pound-
masters, and overseers of the poor. At first the town-
meetings seem to have been held only for the eleotion
of officers* but they acquired to a limited extent the
power of levying taxes and enacting by-laws. In 1703
a law was passed requiring each town to elect yearly
an officer to be known as the " supervisor," ^^^ ^^
whose duty was ** to compute, ascertain, ex- board of »u-
•' •*■ , perviaon.
amine, oversee, and allow the contmgent,
publick, and necessary charges " of the county.^ For
this purpose the supervisors met once a year at the
county town. The principle was the same as that of
the levy court in Delaware. This board of supervis-
ors was a strictly representative government, and
formed a strong contrast to the close corporation by
which county affairs were administered in Virginia.
The New York system is of especial interest, because
it has powerfully influenced the development of local
^titutions throughout the Northwest.
w« W. P. Holcomb, " Pennsylvania Boroughs," J. H. (7. Studies,
IV, iv.
^ Howard, Local Const. Hist., i. 111.
QUKBTIONS ON THS TXZT.
1. Describe the early local goFemmeiit of eastern Sooth Caro-
lina.
2. Describe the early local government of western Sooth Caro-
lina.
3. £zplain the difference.
4. What effort was made in 1768 to put a stop to lyneh law ?
5. What difficulties arose from the attempted adjustment of
1768?
«
6. What compromises were made between the two sections
down to the time of the Civil War ?
7. What changes have been made in local government since the
CivU War ?
8. Mention a peculiarity of the South Carolina ooonij.
9. Compare its size with that of coonties in other states.
10. What disadvantage is due to this great size ?
1 1. What was the earliest form of civil commnniij in Mazylaod,
and from what source did it come ?
12. Trace the development of the hundred in acoordanee with
the following outline : —
a. Intermediate groups between dans and tribes.
b. lUustratiuus from Greece and the North American In-
dians.
c. The Roman century and the Grerman hundred.
13. Describe the English hundred in the tenth century.
14. Describe the hundred court.
1 5. Describe the Maryland hundred and its decay.
16. What is the relation of the Delaware hundred to the county ?
17. Describe the Delaware levy court.
18. What were the prominent features of the Pennsylvania
bounty?
19. Compare the town-meetings of New York with those of New
England.
20. What was the government of the New York county ?
21. How did this government compare with that of the Virginia
county?
SETTLEMENT OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN. 81
§ 2. Settlement of the Public Domain.
The westward movement of population in the United
States has for the most part followed the parallels of
latitude. Thus Virginians and North Carolinians,
crossing the Alleghanies, settled Kentucky and Tennes-
see ; thus people from New England filled up the cen-
tral and northern parts of New York, and
passed on into Michigan and Wisconsin; movement of
thus Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois received
many settlers from New York and Pennsylvania. In
the early times when Kentucky was settled, the pio-
neer would select a piece of land wherever he liked,
and after having a rude survey made, and the limits
marked by " blazing " the trees with a hatchet, the sur-
vey would be put on record in the state land-office. So
Uttle care was taken that '^ half a dozen patents would
sometimes be given for the same tract. Pieces of
land, of all shapes and sizes, lay between the patents.
. . . Such a system naturally begat no end of litiga-
tion, and there remain in Kentucky curious vestiges
of it " to this day.^
In order to avoid such confusion in the settlement
of the territory north of the Ohio river. Congress
passed the land-ordinance of 1785, which was based
chiefly upon the suggestions of Thomas Jefferson, and
laid the foundation of our simple and excellent system
for surveying national lands. According to this sys-
tem as gradually perfected, the government survey-
ors first mark out a north and south line which is
called the principal meridian. Twenty- Method of
four such meridians have been established. JSTpS
The first was the dividing line between Ohio ^^^
and Indiana ; the last one runs through Oregon a lit-
^ Hinsdale, Old Northwest, p. 261.
82 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTT
tie to the west of Portland. On each side of tbe prin-
cipal meridian there are marked off subordinate me-
ridians called range lines, six miles apart, and nam-
bered east and west from their principal.^ Then a
true parallel of latitude is drawn, crossing these merid-
ians at right angles. It is called the hate line, or
standard parallel. Eleven such base lines, for exam-
ple, run across the great stat« of Or^;on. Finally,
on each side of the base line are drawn subordinate
parallels called township lines, six miles apart, and
numbered north and south from their base line. By
1 The following is a diagraiD of the first principal meridiui,
and of tlie base liue ruimiug across southern Michigau. A B ii
the principal meridian ; C D is the base liae. The figures on
the base line mark the range lines ; the figures on the principal
meridian mark the township lines. £ is township 4 north in rai^
5 east ; F is township 6 south iu range 4 west ; G is township 3
north in range 3 west.
B
4 H
o s
S
Q
4
P
As tbe intervals between meridians dimioish as we go north-
SETTLEMENT OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN. 88
these range lines and townsliip lines the whole land is
thus divided into townships just six miles
square, and the townships are all numbered. ^^^^
Take, for example, the township of Deerfield
in Michigan. That is the fourth township north of the
base line, and it Us in the fifth range east of the first
principal meridian. It would be called township num-
ber 4 north range 5 east, and was so called before it
was settled and received a name. Evidently one must
go 24 miles from the principal meridian, or 18 miles
from the base line, in order to enter this township.
It is aU as simple as the numbering of streets in
Philadelphia.^
ward, it is sometimes necessary to introduce a correction line,
the nature of which will be seen from the following diagram: —
Ooneotiim Line..
Base Line.
Diagram of Cobbection Like.
^ In Philadelphia the streets for the most part cross each other
>t right angles and at equal distances, so that the city is laid out
& a checkerboard. The parallel streets running in one direc-
tum haTB names, often taken from trees. Market Street is the
84 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
If now we look at Livingston Couniy, in which this
township of Deeriield is situated, we observe that the
county is made up of sixteen townships, in four rows
of four ; and the next county, Washtenaw, is made
up of twenty townships, in five rows of four. Maps
of our Western states are thus apt to have somewhat of
and of West- ^ checkerboard aspect, not unlike the won-
em counties, (j^rful couutry which Alice visited after she
had gone through the looking-glass. Square townships
are apt to make square or rectangular counties, and the
state, too, is likely to acquire a more symmetrical shape.
central street from \vhich the others are reckoned in both diieo-
tions according to the couplet
'* Market, Arch, Race, and Vine,
Chestnut, Walnut, Spruce, and Fine,'* etc.
The cross streets are not named but numbered, as First, Second,
etc. The houses on one side of the street have odd numbers
and on the other side even numbers, as is the general custom in
the United States. With each new block a new century of num-
bers begins, although there are seldom more than forty real
numbers in a block. For example, the corner house on Market
Street, just above Fifteenth, is 1501 Market Street. At some-
where about 1535 or 1539 you come to Sixteenth Street; then there
is a break in the numberiug, and the next comer house is 1601.
So in going along a numbered street, say Fifteenth, from Mar-
ket, the first number will be 1 ; after passing Arch, 101 ; after
passing Race, 201, etc. With this system a very slight famil-
iarity with the city enables one to find his way to any house, and
to estimate the length of time needful for reaching it. St. Louis
and some other large cities have adopted the Philadelphia plan^
the convenience of which is as great as its monotony. In Wash-
ington the streets running in one direction are lettered A, B, C,
etc., and the cross streets are numbered ; and upon the checker-
board plan is superposed another plan in which broad avenues
radiate in various directions from the Capitol, and a few other
centres. These avenues cut through the square system of streets
in all directions, so that instead of the dull checkerboard monot-
ony there is an almost endless variety of magnificent vistas.
SETTLEMENT OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN. 86
Nothing could be more unlike the jagged, irregular
shape of counties in Virginia or townships in Massa-
chusetts, which grew up just as it happened. The
contrast is similar to that between Chicago, with its
straight streets crossing at right angles, and Boston,
or London, with their labyrinths of crooked lanes.
For picturesqueness the advantage is entirely with the
irregular city, but for practical convenience it is quite
the other way. So with our western lands the sim-
plicity and regularity of the system have made it a
marvel of convenience for the settlers, and doubtless
have had much to do with the rapidity with which
civil governments have been built up in the West.
" This fact," says a recent writer, " will be appreciated
by those who know from experience the ease and cer-
tainty with which the pioneer on the great plains of
Kansas, Nebraska, or Dakota is enabled to select his
homestead or ^ locate his claim ' unaided by the expen*
rive skill of the surveyor." ^
There was more in it than this, however. There was
a germ of organization planted in these western town-
ships, which must be noted as of great importance.
Each township, being six miles in length and six
miles in breadth, was divided into thirty-six numbered
sections, each containing just one square mile, or 640
acres. Each section, moreover, was divided into 16
tracts of 40 acres each, and sales to settlers
were and are generally made by tracts at the of the
system*
rate of a dollar and a quarter per acre. For
fifty dollars a man may buy forty acres of unsettled
land, provided he will actually go and settle upon it,
and this has proved to be a very effective inducement
for enterprising young men to " go West." Many a
tract thus bought for fifty dollars has turned out to
^ Howard, Local Const. Hist, of U, S., vol. i. p. 139.
Fa
86 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
be a soil upon which princely fortunes have grown.
A tract of forty acres represents to-day in Chicago or
Minneapolis an amount of wealth difficult for the im-
agination to grasp.
But in each of these townships there was at least
one section which was set apart for a special purpose.
This was usually the sixteenth section, nearly in the
centre of the township ; and sometimes the
tionforpub- thirty-sixth section, in the southeast comer,
lie Bchool8>
was also reserved. These reservations were
for the support of public schools. Whatever money
was earned, by selling the land or otherwise, in these
sections, was to be devoted to sckool purposes. This
was a most remarkable provision. No other nation
has ever made a gift for schools on so magnificent a
scale. We have good reason for taking pride in such
a liberal provision. But we ought not to forget that
all national gifts really involve taxation, and this is no
exception to the rule, although in this case it is not a
taking of money, but a keeping of it back. The na-
tional government says to the local government, what-
ever revenues may come from that section of 640
acres, be they great or small, be it a spot in a rural
grazing district, or a spot in some crowded city, are
not to go into the pockets of individual men and wo-
men, but are to be reserved for public purposes. This
is a case of disguised taxation, and may serve to re-
mind us of what was said some time ago, that a gov-
ernment cannot give anything without in one way or
another depriving individuals of its equivalent. No
jxum can sit on a camp-stool and by any amount of
togging at that camp-stool lift himself over a fence.
WTiatever is given comes from somewhere, and what-
^yfeT is given by governments comes from the people.
Xhis reservation of one square mile in every town-
SETTLEMENT OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN. 87
ship for purposes of education lias already most pro-
foundly influenced the development of local inthiireaer-
govemment in our western states, and in the JJ^TuS**'*
near future its effects are likely to become to™i5p
still deeper and wider. To mark out a town- k«^«™««*<^
ship on the map may mean very little, but when once
you create in that township some institution that
needs to be cared for, you have made a long stride
toward inaugurating township government. When a
state, as for instance Illinois, grows up after the
method just described, what can be more natural than
for it to make the township a body corporate for
school purposes, and to authorize its inhabitants to
elect school officers and tax themselves, so far as may
be necessary, for the support of the schools? But
the school-house, in the centre of the township, is soon
found to be useful for many purposes. It is conven-
ient to go there to vote for state officers or for con-
gressmen and president, and so the school township
becomes an election district. Having ouce estab-
lished such a centre, it is almost inevitable that it
should sooner or later be made to serve sundry other
purposes, and become an area for the election of con-
stables, justices of the peace, highway surveyors, and
overseers of the poor. In this way a vigorous town-
ship government tends to grow up about the school-
house as a nucleus, somewhat as in early New England
it grew up about the church.
This tendency may be observed in almost all the
western states and territories, even to the Pacific coast.
When the western country was first settled, represen-
tative county government prevailed almost At first the
everywhere. This was partly because the STp?^^
earliest settlers of the West came in much ^*^®*^
greater numbers from the middle and southern states
88 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
than from New England. It was also partly becausei
so long as the oonntiy was thinly settled, the nnmber
of people in a township was yeiy small, and it was not
easy to have a government smaller than that of the
county. It was something, however, that the little
squares on the map, by grouping which the counties
were made, were already called townships. There is
much in a name. It was still more important that
these townships were only six miles square ; for that
made it sure that, in due course of time, when popula-
tion should have become dense enough, they would be
convenient areas for establishing township govern-
ment.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. What feature is conspicuoas in the westward movement of
population in the United States ?
2. What looseness characterized early surveys in Kentucky ?
3. What led to the passage of the land ordinance of 1785 ?
4. Give the leading features of the government survey of west-
em lands : —
a. The principal meridians.
6. The range lines.
c. The base lines.
d. The township lines.
5. Illustrate the application of the system in the case of a town.
6. Contrast in shape western townships and counties with corre-
sponding divisions in Massachusetts and Virginia.
7. Contrast them in convenience and in picturesqueness.
8. What had the convenience of the government system to do
with the settlement of the West ?
9. What were the divisions of the township, and what disposi-
tion was made of them ?
10. What important reservations were made in the townships ?
1 1 . Show how these reservations involved a kind of taxation.
12. What profound influence has the reservation for schools ex-
erted upon local government ?
13. Why did the county system prevail at first ?
TOWNSHIP'COUNTY SYSTEM. 89
§ 8. ITie Sepresentative Totonahip- County System
in the West.
The first western state to adopt the town-meetmg
was Michigan, where the great majority of the selr
tlers had come from New England, or from
central New York, which was a kind of west- meeting jn
ward extension of New England.^ Coun-
ties were established in Michigan Territory in 1805,
and townships were first incorporated in 1825. This
was twelve years before Michigan became a state. At
first the powers of the town-meeting were narrowly
limited. It elected the town and county officers, but
its power of appropriating money seems to have been
restricted to the purpose of extirpating noxious ani-
mals and weeds. In 1827, however, it was author-
ized to raise money for the support of schools, and
since then its powers have steadily increased, until
now they approach those of the town-meeting in Mas-
sachusetts.
The history of Illinois presents an extremely inter-
esting example of rivalry and conflict between the
town system of New England and the county gettiemeiifc
system of the South. Observe that this 0*^*"^**
great state is so long that, while the parallel of lati-
tude starting from its northern boundary runs through
Marblehead in Massachusetts, the parallel through its
southernmost point, at Cairo, runs a little south of
Petersburg in Virginia. In 1818, when Illinois
framed its state government and was admitted to the
Union, its population was chiefly in the southern half,
* " Of the 496 members of the Michigan Pioneer Association
in 1881, 407 are from these sections " [New England and New
York]. Bemis, Local Government in Michigan and the North'
toesf, J. H. U. Studies, 1., y.
90 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
and composed for the most part of pioneers from Yir"
ginia and Virginia's daughter-state Kentue^. These
men brought with them the old Virginia county sys-
tem, but with the very great difference that the county
officers were not appointed by the governor, or allowed
to be a self -perpetuating board, but were elected by the
people of the county. This was a true advance in
the democratic direction, but an essential defect of the
southern system remained in the absence of any kind
of local meeting for the discussion of public affairs
and the enactment of local laws.
By the famous Ordinance of 1787, to which we
shall again have occasion to refer, negro slavery had
been forever prohibited to the north of the Ohio river.
Effects of so that, in spite of the wishes of her early
S^^^f" settlers, Illinois was obliged to enter the
1787. Union as a free state. But in 1820 Mis-
souri was admitted as a slave state, and this turned
the stream of southern migration aside from Illinois
to Missouri. These emigrants, to whom slaveholding
was a mark of social distinction, preferred to go where
they could own slaves. About the same time settlers
from New England and New York, moving along the
southern border of Michigan and the northern borders
of Ohio and Indiana, began pouring into the northern
part of Illinois. These new-comers did not find the
representative county system adequate for their needs,
and they demanded township government. A memora-
ble political struggle ensued between the northern
and southern halves of the state, ending in 1848 with
the adoption of a new constitution. It was provided
" that the legislature should enact a general law for
the political organization of townships, under which
any county might act whenever a majority of its voters
should so determine." ^ This was introducing the
^ Shaw, Local Government in Illinois^ J. H. U. Studies, I., liL
TOWNSHIPS-COUNTY SYSTEM. 91
principle of local option, and in accordance tiherewith
township governments with town-meetings were at
once introduced in the northern counties of the state,
while the southern counties kept on in the old way.
Now comes the most interesting part of the story.
The two systems being thus brought into immediate
contact in the same state, with free choice between
them left to the people, the northern system has slowly
but steadily supplanted the southern system, until at
the present day only one fifth part of the counties in
Illinois remain without township government.
This example shows the intense vitality of the
township system. It is the kind of government that
people are sure to prefer when they have intenaevi-
once tried it under favourable conditions. J^g^p*^®
In the West the hostile conditions against «y^™-
which it has to contend are either the recent existence
of negro slavery and the ingrained prejudice in favour
of the Virginia method, as in Missouri ; or simply the
sparseness of population, as in Nebraska. Time will
evidently remove the latter obstacle, and probably the
former also. It is very significant that in Missouri,
which began so lately as 1879 to erect township gov-
ernments under a local option law similar to that of
Illinois, the process has already extended over about
one sixth part of the state ; and in Nebraska, where
the same process began in 1883, it has covered nearly
one third of the organized counties of the state.
The principle of local option as to government has
been carried still farther in Minnesota and Dakota.
The method just described may be called county op-
county option ; the question is decided by a Ji^Sfp
niajority vote of the people of the county. ^^^^^
But in Minnesota in 1878 it was enacted that as soon
as any one of the little square townships in that state
92 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
should contain as many as twenty-five legal voters, it
might petition the board of county commissioners and
obtain a township organization, even though the ad-
jacent townships in the same county should remain
under county government only. Five years later the
same provision was adopted by Dakota, and under it
township government is steadUy spreading.
Two distinct grades of township government are to
be observed in the states west of the Alleghanies ; the
one has the town-meeting for deHberative
Grades of i i i t d-\t • i
township purposes, the other has not. In Ohio and
Indiana, which derived their local institu-
tions largely from Pennsylvania, there is no such
town-meeting, the administrative offices are more or
less concentrated in a board of trustees, and the town
is quite subordinate to the county. The principal
features of this system have been reproduced in Iowa,
Missouri, and Kansas.
The other system was that which we have seen be-
ginning in Michigan, under the influence of New
York and New England. Here the town-meeting,
with legislative powers, is always present. The most
noticeable feature of the Michigan system is the rela-
tion between township and county, which was taken
from New York. The county board is composed of the
supervisors of the several townships, and thus repre-
sents the townships. It is the same in Illinois. It is
held by some writers that this is the most perfect
form of local government,^ but on the other hand the
objection is made that county boards thus constituted
are too large.^ We have seen that in the states in
question there are not less than 16, and sometimes
more than 20, townships in each county. In a board
^ Howard, Local Const Hist, passim.
^ Bemis, Local Government in Michigan, J. H. U. Studies, I., v.
TOWNSHIP-COUNTY SYSTEM. 98
of 16 or 20 members it is hard to fasten responsi-
bility upon anybody in particidar; and thus it be-
comes possible to have ^' combinations," and to indulge
in that exchange of favours known as ^^ log-rolling/'
which is one of the besetting sins of all large repre-
sentative bodies. Besponsibility is more concentrated
in the smaller county boards of Massachusetts, Wis-
consin, and Minnesota.
It is one signal merit of the peaceful and untram-
melled way in which American institutions have
grown up, the widest possible scope being allowed to
mdividual and local preferences, that differ-
ent states adopt different methods of attain- result of the
Absence of
insc the great end at which all are aiming in centraiiza.
ik)iiimon, — good government. Une part oi United
>ur vast country can profit by the experi-
ence of other parts, and if any system or method thus
K>ines to prevail everywhere in the long run, it is
ikely to be by reason of its intrinsic excellence. Our
soiintry affords an admirable field for the study of the
general principles which lie at the foundations of uni-
rersal history. Governments, large and small, are
rrowing up all about us, and in such wise that we can
vatch the processes of growth, and learn lessons which,
if ter making due allowances for difference of circum-
stance, are very helpful in the study of other times
ind countries.
The general tendency toward the spread of township
Tovemment in the more recently settled parts of the
LTnited States is unmistakable, and I have already re-
oaarked upon the influence of the public school sys-
tem in aiding this tendency. The school district, as a
preparation for the self-governing township, is already
exerting its influence in Colorado, Nevada, California,
Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and .Washing-
ton.
94 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
Something similar is going on in llie fMiuthem states,
as already hinted in the case of South Carolina. Lo-
cal taxation for school purposes has also been estab-
lished in Kentue^ and Tennessee, in both Virginias,
and elsewhere. There has thus begun a most natural
and wholesome movement, which migbt easily be
checked, with disastrous results, by the injudicious
,^^^^ appropriation of national revenue for the
co^eniment aid of southem schools. It is to be hoped
ingiiitiia that throughout the southem states, as for-
merly in Michigan, the self-governing school
district may prepare the way for the self-governing
township, with its deliberative town-meeting. Such a
growth must needs be slow, inasmuch as it requires
long political training on the part of the negroes and
the lower classes of white people; but it is along
such a line of development that such political training
can best be acquired ; and in no other way is complete
harmony between the two races so likely to be secured.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. Describe the origin and development of the town-meeting in
Michigan.
2. Describe the settling of southern Illinois.
3. Describe the settling of northern Illinois.
4. What difference in thought and feeling existed between these
sections ?
5. What systems of local government came into rivalry in Ulir
nois, and why ?
6. What compromise between them was put into the state con-
stitution ?
7. Which system, the town or the county, has shown the g^reater
vitality, and why ?
8. What obstacles has the town system to work against ?
9. Show how the principle of local option in government has
been applied in Missouri, Nebraska, Minnesota, and Da-
kota.
TOWNSHIP^COUNTY SYSTEM, 96
10. What two grades of town goYemment exist west of the
Alleghanies ?
11. What objection exists to large county boards of govern-
ment?
12. Why is our country an excellent field for the study of the
principles of government ?
13. What unmistakable tendency in the case of township go vem-
ment is noticeable ?
14. Speak of township government in the South.
SUGGESTIVE QXTESTIONS AND DXRECnOirS.
It may need to be repeated (see page 12) that it is not expected
that each pupil shall answer all the miscellaneous questions put, or
respond to all the suggestions made in this book. Indeed, the
teacher may be pardoned if now and then be finds it difficult
himself to answer a question, — particularly if it is framed to
provoke thought rather than lead to a conclusion, or if it is bet-
ter fitted for some other community or part of the country than
that in which he lives. Let him therefore divide the questions
among his pupils, or assign to them selected questions. In cases
that call for special knowledge, let the topics go to pupils who
may have exceptional facilities for information at home.
The important point is not so much the settlement of all the
q[uestions proposed as it is the encouragement of the inquiring
and thinking spirit on the part of the pupil.
1. What impression do you get from this chapter about the hold
of town government upon popular favour ?
2. What do you regard as the best features of town govern-
ment ?
3. Is there any tendency anywhere to divide towns into smaller
towns ? If it exists, illustrate and explain it.
4* Is there any tendency anywhere to unite towns into larger
towns or into cities ? If it exists, illustrate and explain it.
5- In every town-meeting there are leaders, — usually men of
character, ability, and means. Do you understand that
these men practically have their own way in town affairs,
— that the voters as a whole do but little more than fall
in with the wishes and plans of their leaders? Or is
there considerable independence in thought and action on
the side of the voters ?
96 TOWNSHIP AND COUNTY.
6. Can a town do what it pleases, or is it limited in its action?
If limited, by whom or by what is it restricted, and where
are the restrictions recorded ? (Consult the Statutes.)
7. Why should the majority rule in town-meeting ? Suggest,
if possible, a better way.
S. Is it, on the whole, wise that the vote of the poor man shall
count as much as that of the rich, the Yote of the igno-
rant as much as that of the intelligent, the vote of the
unprincipled as much as that of the high-toned ?
9. Have the poor, the ignorant, or the unprincipled any inter-
ests to be regarded in government ?
10. Is the single vote a man casts the full measure of his infla*
ence and power in the town-meeting ?
1 1. What are the objections to a suffrage restricted by property
and intellectual qualifications? To a suffrage unre-
stricted by such qualifications ?
12. Is lynch law ever justifiable ?
13* Ought those who resort to lynch law to be punished? If
so, for what ?
14. Compare the condition or government of a community where
lynch law is resorted to with the condition or government
of a community where it is unknown.
15. May the citizen who is not an officer of the law interfere (1)
to stop the fighting of boys in the public streets, (2) to
capture a thief who is plying his trade, (3) to defend a
person who is brutally assaulted ? Is there anything like
lynch law in such interference ? Where does the citizen's
duty begin and end in such cases ?
16. How came the United States to own the public domain or
any part of it? (Consult my Critical Period of Amer.
Hist., pp. 187-207.)
17. How does this domain get into the possession of individuals ?
18. Is it right for the United States to give any part of it away ?
If right, under what conditions is it right ? If wrong,
under what conditions is it wrong ?
19. What is the " homestead act " of the United States, and what
is its object ?
20. Can perfect squares of the same size be laid out with the
range and township lines of the public surveys ? Are all
the sections of a township of the same size ? Explain.
TOWNSHIP-COUNTY SYSTEM. 97
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.
§ 1. Vamous Local Systems. — J. H, U. Studies^ I., vL,
£dward Ingle, Parish Institutions of Maryland ; L» yii.» John
Johnson, Old Maryland Manors / I., zii., B. J. Ramage, Local
Government and Free Schools in South Carolina ; III., v.-vii., L.
W. Wilhelm, Local Institutions of Maryland ; IV., i., Irving El-
ting, Dutch Village Communities on the Hucbon River.
§ 2.« Settlement of the Public Domain. — /. H. U,
Studies, III., i., H. B. Adams, Maryland's Influence upon Land
Cessions to the United States ; IV., vii.-iz., Shoshuke Sato, His"
tory of the Land Question in the United States.
§ 3. The Representative Township-County System. —
J. H. U. Studies, I., iii., Albert Shaw, Local Chvemment in Uli-
nois ; I., y., Edward Bemis, Local Government in Michigan and the
Northwest; II., vii., Jesse Macy, Institutional Beginnings m a
Western State (Jowa). For farther illustration of one set of
institutions supervening upon another, see also V., y.-vi., J. G.
Bourinot, Local Government in Canada ; YIIL, iii., D. E. Speup
oer, Local Government in Wisconsin.
CHAPTER V.
THE crrr.
§ 1. Direct and Indirect Government.
In the foregoing survey of local institutions and
their growth, we have had occasion to compare and
. sometimes to contrast two difiEerent methods
Buininary ox -i • /» t
foregoing of fifovemment as exemplified on the one
results. ° , *
hand in the township and on the other hand
in the coimty. In the former we have direct govern-
ment by a primary assembly,^ the town-meeting ; in
the latter we have indirect government by a represen-
tative board. If the coimty board, as in colonial Vir-
ginia, perpetuates itself, or is appointed otherwise than
by popular vote, it is not strictly a representative
board, in the modern sense of the phrase ; the govern-
ment is a kind of oligarchy. If, as in colonial Penn-
sylvania, and in the United States generally to-day,
the county board consists of officers elected by the
people, the county government is a representative
democracy. The township government, on the other
hand, as exemplified in New England and in the
northwestern states which have adopted it, is a pure
democracy. The latter, as we have observed, has one
signal advantage over all other kinds of government,
^ A primary assembly is one in which the members attend of
their own right, without having been elected to it ; a representa-
tive assembly is composed of elected delegates.
DIRECT AND INDIRECT GOVERNMENT. 99
in so far as it tends to make every man feel that the
business of government is part of his own business,
and that where he has a stake in the management of
public affairs he has also a voice. When people have
got into the habit of leaving local affairs to be man-
aged by representative boards, their active interest in
local affairs is liable to be somewhat weakened, as all
energies in this world are weakened, from want of
exercise. When some fit subject of complaint is
brought up, the individual is too apt to feel that it is
none of his business to furnish a remedy, let the
proper officers look after it. He can vote at eleo-
tions, which is a power ; he can perhaps make a stir in
the newspapers, which is also a power ; but personal
participation in town-meeting is likewise a power, the
necessary loss of which, as we pass to wider spheres
of government, is unquestionably to be regretted.
Nevertheless the loss is inevitable. A primary
assembly of all the inhabitants of a county, for pur-
poses of local government, is out of the question.
There must be representative government, Di^ctgov-
and for this purpose the county system, an SSS^^^'a
inheritance from the ancient English shire, «o^<y-
has furnished the needful machinery. Our coimty
government is near enough to the people to be kept in
general from gross abuses of power. There are many
points which can be much better decided in small rep-
rei^tative bodies than in large miscellaneous meetings.
The responsibility of our local boards has been fairly
well preserved. The coimty system has had no mean
share in keeping alive the spirit of local independence
and self-government among our people. As regards
efficiency of administration, it has achieved commend-
able success, except in the matter of rural highways ;
and if our roads are worse than those of any other
100 THE CITY,
civilized country, that is due not so much to imperfect
administrative methods as to other causes, — such as
the sparseness of population, the fierce extremes of
sunshine and frost, and the fact that since this huge
country began to be reclaimed from the wilderness,
the average voter, who has not travelled in Europe,
knows no more about good roads than he knows about
the temples of Paestum or the pictures of Tintoretto,
and therefore does not realize what demands he may
reasonably make.
Representative government in counties is necessi*
tated by the extent of territory covered ; in cities it is
necessitated by the multitude of people. When the
town comes to have a very large population.
Two r6&8onB ^ * x
why indirect it is iu thc first placc physically impossible
fa inevitable to havc town-mectiugs. No Way could be
devised by which all the taxpayers of the city
of New York could be assembled for discussion. In
1820 the population of Boston was about 40,000, of
whom rather more than 7,000 were voters qualified to
attend the town-meetings. Consequently " when a town-
meeting was held on any exciting subject in Faneuil
Hall, those only who obtained places near the moder-
ator could even hear the discussion. A few busy or in-
terested individuals easily obtained the management of
the most important affairs in an assembly in which the
greater number could have neither voice nor hearing.
When the subject was not generally exciting, town-m€et-
ings were usually composed of the selectmen, the town
officers, and thirty or forty inhabitants. Those who thus
came were for the most part drawn to it from some offi-
cial duty or private interest, which, when performed or
attained, they generally troubled themselves but little,
or not at all, about the other business of the meeting." ^
^ Quincy's Municipal History of Boston, p. 28.
DIRECT AND INDIRECT GOVERNMENT. 101
Under these circumstances it was found necessary
in 1822 to drop the town-meeting altogether and de-
vise a new form of government for Boston. After
various plans had been suggested and discussed, it was
decided that the new government should be vested in
a mayor ; a select council of eight persons to be called
the board of aldermen; and a common council of
forty-eight persons, four from each of twelve wards into
which the city was to be divided. All these officials
were to be elected by the people. At the same time
the official name '^ Town of Boston " was changed to
" City of Boston."
Let us in the second place observe that as towns
increase in size the amount of government that is
necessary tends in some respects to increase.
Wherever there is a crowd there is likely to complexity
be some need of rules and regulations. In meDtin
citios
the country a man may build his house pretty
much as he pleases ; but in the city he may be forbid-
den to build it of wood, and perhaps even the thickness
of the party walls or the position of the chimneys may
come in for some supervision on the part of the govern-
ment. For further precaution against spreading fires,
the city has an organized force of men, with costly
engines, engine-houses, and stables. In the country
a board of health has comparatively little to do ; in
the city it is often confronted with difficult sanitary
problems which call for highly paid professional skill
on the part of physicians and chemists, architects and
plumbers, masons and engineers. So, too, the water
supply of a great city is likely to be a complicated
business, and the police force may well need as much
management as a small army. In short, with a city,
increase in size is sure to involve increase in [the
number and complexity of the problems to be solved
102 THE CITY.
by the legislative body, necessitating careful and pro-
longed consideration and frequent discussion, snch as
would be impracticable under a town-meeting system.
To meet the new situation, it is customary for a com-
munity to substitute an indirect or representative form
of government for the direct or primary form which
has sufficed for the comparatively simple needs of a
small and scattered population. ^ A charter, creating a
new municipal corporation with well-defined powers, a
representative assembly, and more distinct and highly
organized executive and judicial departments, is se-
cured from the state legislature. In some states, the
municipality is organized under a general enabling act
instead of by grant of a special charter. In Massa-
chusetts, a town may apply for a city charter when it
has twelve thousand inhabitants; in Pennsylvania,
when it has ten thousand. Boroughs^ and incorpo-
rated villages, such as exist in some of the New Eng-
land and Middle States, are intermediate in type
between the town and the city, illustrating the first
short step towards representative government. The
origin of English boroughs and cities is so highly
instructive in this connection as to warrant us in
devoting another section to it.]
There is more or less of history involved in these offices and
designations, to which we may devote a few words of explanation.
^ A remarkable instance of the adaptability of the town-meet-
ing to urban conditions is seen in Brookline, Mass. With a pop-
ulation little short of twenty-five thousand, the community still
refuses to adopt a representative form of government.
^ The word appears in many town names, such as Edinburgh^
Scarborough^ Canterbury y Bury St. Edmunds; and on the Conti-
nent, as Hamburg y Cherbourg y Burgos, etc. In Connecticut, New
Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Minnesota, the name '^ borough" is
applied to a certain class of municipalities with some of the
powers of cities. — Fiske.
DIRECT AND INDIRECT GOVERNMENT 108
In New England local usage there is an ambiguity in the word
'< town." As an o£Bcial designation it means the inhabitants of a
township considered as a community or corporate body. In com-
mon parlance it often means the patch of land constituting the
township on the map, as when we say that Squire Brown's elm is
" the biggest tree in town." But it still oftener means a collec-
tion of streets, houses, and families too large to be called a vil-
lage, but without the municipal government that characterizes a
city. Sometimes it is used par excellence for a city, as when an
inhabitant of Cambridge, itself a large suburban city, speaks of
going to Boston as going ** into town." But such cases are of
course mere survivals from the time when the suburb was a vil-
lage. In American usage generally the town is something be-
tween village and city, a kind of inferior or incomplete city. The
image which it calls up in the mind is of something urban and
not rural.. This agrees substantially with the usage in European
history, where "town " ordinarily means a walled town or city
as contrasted with a village. In England the word is used either
in this general sense, or more specifically as signifying an inferior
city, as in America. But the thing which the town lacks, as
compared with the complete city, is very different in America
from what it is in England. In America it is municipal govern-
ment — with mayor, aldermen, and common council — which
must be added tathe town in order to make it a city. In England
the town may (and usually does) have this municipal government ;
but it is not distinguished by the Latin name " city " unless it has
a cathedral and a bishop. Or in other words the English city is,
or has been, the capital of a diocese. Other towns in England
are disting^uished as " boroughs," an old Teutonic word which
was originally applied to towns 2^ fortified places. The voting
inhabitants of an English city are called " citizens ; " those of a
borough are called ''burgesses." Thus the ofBcial corporate de-
signation of Cambridge is '' the mayor, aldermen, and burgesses
of Cambridge ; " but Oxford is the seat of a bishopric, and its
corporate designation is '' the mayor, aldermen, and citizens of
Oxford."
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. What is the essential difference between township govern-
ment and county government ?
2. What is the distinct advantage of the former ?
3. Why is direct government impossible in the county ?
4. Speak of the degree of efficiency in county government.
104 TEE CITY.
5. Why is direct govemment impossible in a city ? Give two
reasons.
6. What difficulties in direct government were experienced in
Boston in 1820 and many years preceding ?
7. What remedy for these difficulties was adopted ?
8. What effect has the growth of a town upon the amount of
government necessary ?
9. Why does this render government by town-meeting imprac-
ticable ?
10. By what process is the city government snbstitnted for that
of the town ?
§ 2. Origin of English Boroughs and Cities.
What, then, was the origin of the English borough
or city ? In the days when Roman legions occupied
for a lone time certain military stations in
Britain, their camps were apt to become
centres of trade and thus to grow into cities. Such
places were generally known as casters or chesters^
from the Latin castra^ " camp," and there are many
of them on the map of England to-day. But these
were exceptional cases. As a rule the origin of the
borough was as purely English as its name. We have
seen that the town was originally the dwelling-place
Coalescence ^^ ^ Stationary clan, surrounded by palisades
rntS'f^ifled ^^ '^y ^ dense quickset hedge. Now where
boroughs. ^^q\x small cncloscd places were thinly scat-
tered about they developed simply into villages. But
where, through the development of trade or any other
cause, a good many of them grew up close together
within a narrow compass, they gradually coalesced
into a kind of compound town ; and with the greater
population and greater wealth, there was naturally
more elaborate and permanent fortification than that
of the palisaded village. There were massive walls
and frowning turrets, and the place came to be called
a fortress or " borough." The borough, then, " was
ENGLISH BOROUGHS AND CITIES. 105
simply several townships packed tightly together ; a
hundred smaller in extent and thicker in population
than other hundreds." ^
From this compact and composite character of the
borough came several important results. We have
seen that the hundred was the smallest area
for the administration of justice. The town- as a bun- ^
ship was in many respects self-governing,
but it did not have its court, any more than the New
England township of the present day has its court.
The lowest court was that of the hundred, but as the
borough was equivalent to a hundred it soon came to
have its own court. And although much obscurity
still surrounds the early history of municipal govern-
ment in England, it is probable that this court was a
representative board, like any other hundred court,
and that the relation of the borough to its constituent
townships resembled the relation of the modem city
to its constituent wards.
But now as certain boroughs grew larger and an-
nexed outlying townships, or acquired adjacent terri-
tory which presently became covered with The borough
streets and houses, their constitution became •^•^^'^'y-
Btill more complex. The borough came to embrace
several closely packed himdreds, and thus became
analogous to a shire. In this way it gained for itself
a sheriff and the equivalent of a county court. For
example, under the charter granted by Henry I. in
1101, London was expressly recognized as a county
l>y itself. Its burgesses could elect their own chief
magistrate, who was called the port-reeve, inasmuch
as London is a seaport ; in some other towns he was
called the borough-reeve. He was at once the chief
^ Freeman, Norman Conquest, vol. v. p. 466. For a descrip-
tion of the hundred, see above, pp. 75-80.
106 THE CITY.
executive officer and the chief judge. The burgesses
could also elect their sheriff, although in all rural
counties Henry's father, William the Conqueror, had
lately deprived the people of this privilege and ap-
pointed the sheriffs himself. London had its rep-
resentative board, or council, which was the equiva-
lent of a county court. Each ward, moreover, had its
own representative board, which was the equivalent of
a himdred court. ^' Within the wards, or hundreds,
the burgesses were grouped together in township, par-
ish, or manor. . . . Into the civic organization of
London, to whose special privileges all lesser cities
were ever striving to attain, the elements of local ad-
ministration embodied in the township, the hundred,
and the shire thus entered as component parts." ^
Constitutionally, therefore, London was a little world
in itself, and in a less degree the same was true of
other cities and boroughs which afterwards obtained
the same kind of organization, as for example, York
and Newcastle, Lincoln and Norwich, Southampton
and BristoL
In such boroughs or cities all classes of society were
brought into close contact, — barons and
knights, priests and monks, merchants and
craftsmen, free labourers and serfs. But trades and
manufactures, which always had so much to do with
the growth of the city, acquired the chief power and
the control of the government. From an early period
tradesmen and artisans found it worth while to form
themselves into guilds or brotherhoods, in order to
protect their persons and property against insult and
robbery at the hands of great lords and their lawless
military retainers. Thus there came to be guilds, or
^ Hannis Taylor, Origin and Growth of the English ConstUih
tion, vol. i. p. 458.
ENGLISH BOROUGHS AND CITIES, 107
^' worshipful companies," of grocers, fishmongers,
butchers, weavers, tailors, ironmongers, carpenters,
saddlers, armourers, needle-makers, etc. In large
towns there was a tendency among such trade guilds
to combine in a " united brotherhood," or " town
guild," and this organization at length acquired full
control of the city government. In London this pro-
cess was completed in the course of the thirteenth cen-
tury. To obtain the full privileges of citizenship one
had to be enrolled in a guild. The guild hall became
the city hall. The aldermen^ or head men of sundry
guilds, became the head men of the several Mayor, ai-
wards. There was a representative board, ^^5J^*°*
or common council^ elected by the citizens. ^"^^^
The aldermen 'and common council held their meet-
ings in the Guildhall, and over these meetings pre-
sided the chief magistrate, or port-reeve, who by this
time, in accordance with the fashion then prevailing,
had assumed the French title of mayor. As London
had come to be a little world in itself, so this city
government reproduced on a small scale the national
government; the mayor answering to the king, the
aristocratic board of aldermen to the House of Lords,
and the democratic common council to the House of
Commons. A still more suggestive comparison, per-
haps, would be between the aldermen and our federal
Senate, since the aldermen represented wards, while
the common council represented the citizens.
The constitution thus perfected in the city of Lon-
don^ six hundred years ago has remained to this day
^ The city of London extends east and west from the Tower
to Temple Bar, and north and south from Finsbury to the
Thames, with a population of not more than 100,000, and is but
a small part of the enormous metropolitan area now known as
London, which is a circle of twelve miles radius in every direc-
108 THE CITY.
The city of without essential change. The voters are
London. enrolled members of companies which re-
present the ancient guilds. Each year they choose
one of the aldermen to be lord mayor. Within the
city he has precedence next to the sovereign and be-
fore the royal family ; elsewhere he ranks as an earl,
thus indicating the equivalence of the city to a county,
and with like significance he is lord lieutenant of the
city and justice of the peace. The twenty-six alder-
men, one for each ward, are elected by the people,
such as are entitled to vote for members of parlia-
ment; they are justices of the peace. The common
councilmen, 206 in number, are also elected by the
people, and their legislative power within the city is
practically supreme ; parliament does not think of
overruling it. And the city government thus consti-
tuted is one of the most clean-handed and efficient in
the world.
The development of other English cities and bor-
oughs was so far like that of London that merchant
guilds generally obtained control, and government by
mayor, aldermen, and common council came to be the
English prevailing type. Having also their own
buiwarkaof judgcs and shcriffs, and not being obliged
^ ^^' to go outside of their own walls to obtain
justice, to enforce contracts and punish crime, their
efficiency as independent self-governing bodies was
great, and in many a troubled time they served as
staunch bulwarks of English liberty. The strength
of their turreted walls was more than supplemented
by the length of their purses, and such immunity
from the encroachments of lords and king as they
tion from its centre at Charing Cross, with a population of more
than 6,000,000. This vast area is an agglomeration of many
parishes, manors, etc., and has [now many of its common interests
provided for and supervised by the London County Coanoil].
ENGLISH BOROUGHS AND CITIES. 109
could not otherwise win, they contrived to buy. Ar-
bitrary taxation they generally escaped by compound-
ing with the royal exchequer in a fixed sum or quit-
rent, known as the^rma hurgi. It was never safe for
any king to trespass upon the liberties of London,
and through the worst times that city has remained a
true republic with liberal republican sentiments. If
George III. could have been guided by the advice of
London, as expressed by its great alderman Beckford,
the American colonies would not have been driven
into rebellion.
The most signal part played by the English bor-
oughs and cities, in securing English freedom, dates
from the thirteenth century, when the nation was
vaguely struggling for representative government on
a national scale, as a means of curbing the power of
the crown. In that memorable struggle, the issue of
which to some extent prefigured the shape that the
government of the United States was to take five hun-
dred years afterward, the cities and boroughs sup-
ported Simon de Montfort, the leader of the
, I. 1 I. Simon de
popular party and one of the foremost among Montfort
the heroes and martyrs of English liberty. dtiea.
Accordingly, on the morrow of his decisive victory at
Lewes in 1264, when for the moment he stood master
of England, as Cromwell stood four centuries later,
Simon called a parliament to settle the afiFairs of the
kingdom, and to this parliament he invited, along with
the lords who came by hereditary custom, not only
two elected representatives from each rural county,
but also two elected representatives from each city and
borough. In this parliament, which met in 1265,
the combination of rural with urban representatives
brought all parts of England together in a grand
representative body, the House of Commons, with
110 THE CITY.
interests in common ; and thas the people presently
gained power enough to defeat all attempts to estab-
lish irresponsible government, such as we call despot-
ism, on the part of the crown.
If we look at the later history of English cities and
boroughs, it appears that, in spite of the splendid
work which they did for the English people at large,
they did not always succeed in preserving their own
liberties unimpaired. London, indeed, has
a^m^in always maintained its character as a truly
cities (dr. representative republic. But in many Ene-
lish cities, during the Tudor and Stuart
periods, the mayor and aldermen contrived to dis-
pense with popular election, and thus to become close
corporations or self-perpetuating oligarchical bodies.
There was a notable tendency toward this sort of
irresponsible government in the reign of James I.,
and the Puritans who came to the shores of Massachu-
setts Bay were inspired with a feeling of revolt against
such methods. This doubtless lent an emphasis to the
mood in which they proceeded to organize themselves
into free self-governing townships. The oligarchical
abuses in English cities and boroughs remained until
they were swept away by the great Municipal Bef orm
Act of 1835.
The first city governments established in America
were framed in conscious imitation of the correspond*
ing institutions in England. The oldest city govern-
ment in the United States is that of New York. Shortly
after the town was taken from the Dutch in 1664, the
new governor. Colonel Nichols, put an end to its
Dutch form of government, and appointed a mayor,
ooTemment ^^^ aldermen, and a sheriff. These officers
SfN?w^rk appointed inferior officers, such as consta-
(1686-1821). bjgg^ 2jiA. little or nothing was left to popular
ENGLISH BOROUGHS AND CITIES. Ill
election. But in 1686, under Governor Dongan, New
York was regularly incorporated and chartered as a
city. Its constitution bore an especially close resem-
blance to that of Norwich, then the third city in Eng-
land in size and importance. The city of New York
was divided into six wards. The governing corpora-
tion consisted of the mayor, the recorder, the town-
clerk, six aldermen, and six assistants. ^11 the land
not taken up by individual owners was granted as
public land to the corporation, which in return paid
into the British exchequer one beaver-skin yearly.
This was a survival of the old quit-rent or Jlrma hurgi}
The city was made a county, and thus had its court,
its sheriff and coroner, and its high [and inferior con-
stables. The aldermen and assistants, who seem to
Lave answered to the ordinary common coimcil, were
elected annually by the people, but the mayor and
sheriff were appointed by the governor, while of the
other officers some were appointed by the king or
governor, others by the mayor, and still others by the
mayor and common council conjointly.] The mayor,
recorder, and aldermen, without the assistants, were a
judicial body, and held a weekly court of common
pleas. When the assistants were added, the whole
became a legislative body empowered to enact by-laws.
Although this charter granted very imperfect powers
of self-government, the people contrived to live under
it for a hundred and thirty-five years, until 1821.
Before the Revolution their petitions succeeded in ob-
taining only a few imimportant amendments.^ When
the British army captured the city in September, 1776,
it was forthwith placed under martial law, and so re-
^ Jameson, " The Municipal Government of New York,"
"Hag, Amer. Hist, vol. viii. p. 609.
* Especiallj in the so-called Montgomerie charter of 1730.
112 THE CITY.
malned until the army departed in November, 1783.
Daring those seven years New York was not altogether
a comfortable place in which to live. After 1783 the
city government remained as before, except that the
state of New York assumed the control formerly ex-
ercised by the British crown. Mayor and recorder,
town-clerk and sheriflf, were now appointed by a coun-
cil of appointment consisting of the governor and four
senators. This did not work well, and the constitution
of 1821 gave to the people the power of choosing their
sheriff and town-clerk, while the mayor was to be
elected by the common council. Nothing but the ap-
pointment of the recorder remained in the hands of
the governor. Thus nearly forty years after the close
of the War of Independence the city of New York
acquired self-government as complete as that of the
city of London. In 1857, as we shall see, this self-
government was greatly curtailed, with results more
or less disastrous.
The next city governments to be organized in the
American colonies, after that of New York, were
those of Philadelphia, incorporated in 1701, and An-
City (rovera- ^apolis, incorporated in 1708. These govern-
PhSLiSiphia inents were framed after the wretched pat-
(1701-1789). i-gpjj ^jjgjj gQ common in England. In both
cases the mayor, the recorder, the aldermen, and the
common council constituted a close self-electing cor-
poration. The resulting abuses were not so great as
in England, probably because the cities were so smalL
But in course of time, especially in Philadelphia as it
increased in population, the viciousness of the system
was abundantly illustrated. As the people could not
elect the governing corporation or any of its members,
they very naturally and reasonably distrusted it, and
through the legislature they contrived so to limit its
ENOLISH BOROUGHS AND CITIES, 118
powers of taxation that it was really unable to keep
the streets in repair, to light them at night, or to sup-
port an adequate police force. An attempt was made
to supply such wants by creating divers independent
boards of commissioners, one for paving and draining,
another for street-lamps and watchmen, a third for
town.pumps, and so on. In this way responsibility
got so minutely parcelled out and scattered, and there
was so much jealousy and wrangling between the
different boards and the corporation, that the result
was chaos. The public money was habitually wasted
and occasionally embezzled, and there was general dis-
satisfaction. In 1789 the close corporation was abol-
ished, and thereafter the aldermen and common coun-
cil were elected by the citizens, the mayor was chosen
by the aldermen out of their own number, and the
recorder was appointed by the mayor and aldermen.^
Thus Philadelphia obtained a representative govern-
ment.
These instances of New York and Philadelphia
sufficiently illustrate the beginnings of city govern-
ment in the United States. In each case the system
was copied from England at a time when city govern-
ment in England was sadly demoralized. What was
copied was not the free republic of 'London, with its
1 [The history of the election of mayors in American cities is
mteresting. The mayor of New York city was appointed by the
council, consisting of the governor and four state senators, up to
1822, and then was chosen by the aldermen. It was not until
1834 that the mayor of this municipality was elected by the
qualified voters. In Philadelphia, the mayor was chosen by the
city council as late as the year 1839. The mayor of Boston was,
by the charter creating the city, elected by popular vote. This
cbarter, granted in 1822, allowed the mayor to be a member of
tbe city council. At present, the mayors of American cities are
generally elected by the voters. — Conkling, CUy Government m
^ United States, pp. 28, 29.]
114 THE CITY,
noble traditions of civic honour and sagacious public
spirit, but the imperfect republics or oligarchies into
which the lesser English boroughs were sinking, amicft
the foul political intrigues and corruption which char-
acterized the Stuart period. The government of
American cities in our own time is admitted on all
TTKiitions hands to be far from satisfactory. It is in-
SJ^S^t^^' terestiiig to observe that the cities which had
^*<*^K- municipal government before the Revolu-
tion, though they have always had their full share of
able and high-minded citizens, do not possess even the
tradition of good government. And the difficulty,
in those colonial times, was plainly want of adequate
self-government, want of responsibility on the part of
the public servants toward their employers the people.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. What was the origin of the casters and chesters that are found
in England to-day ?
2. Trace the development of the English borough nntil it be-
came a kind of hundred.
3. Compare this borough with the hundred in the administra-
tion of justice.
4. Trace the further development of the borough in oases in
which it becaflie a county.
5. Illustrate this development with London, showing how the
elements of the township, the hundred, and the shire gov-
ernment enter into its civic organization.
6. Explain the origin and the objects of the various g^ds.
7* Compare the government of London with that of Great
Britain or of the United States.
8. Give some account of the lord mayor, the ^dermen, and
the councilmen of London.
9 Distinguish between London the city and Lonc^on the me-
tropolis.
10. Show how the English cities and boroughs becaii^e bulwarks
of liberty lyr (1) their facilities for obtaining justice, (2)
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 115
the strength of their walls, and (3) the length of their
parses.
1 1 . Contrast the power of London with that of the throne.
12. What notable advance in government was made under the
leadership of Simon de Montf oi*t ?
13. What abuses crept into the government of many of the
English cities ?
14. What was the Puritan attitude towards such abuses ?
1 5. Give an account of the government of New York city : —
a. The charter of 1686.
h. The governing corporation.
c. The public land.
d. The city's privileges as a county.
e. Judicial functions.
f. Martial law.
g. The charter of 1821.
1 6. Give an account of the government of Philadelphia : —
a. The governments after which it was patterned.
h. The viciousness of the system adopted.
c. The legislative interference that was thus provoked.
d. The division of responsibility and the results of such
division.
e. The nature of the changes made in 1789.
17. Why are the traditions of good government lacking in the
older American cities ?
§ 3. The Government of Cities in the United States .
[We cannot better approach this subject than by
asking ourselves what we may reasonably ex- Municipal
pect in these days from the government of a *<^*»^**«»-
city. While there is room for a difference of opinion,
we shall all agree upon at least thus much of the
answer: The modern city must be a safe place in
which to live and hold property. A moment's a. Proteo-
reflection will show how great and varied **°°*
a responsibility this imposes upon the government.
There must be an adequate police force and a thor-
oughly organized fire department. There should be
I
116 THE CITY.
a board of health to promote proper sanitaiy oondi-
tions and prevent the spread of contagious diseases.
This department may and should draw extensively
upon the resources of modern science. Further, the
city must have a complete sewer system and must
make provision for the disposal of sewage and garbage.^
Streets must be kept clean, and there must be more
or less supervision of the food supply, housing con-
ditions, markets, and slaughter houses. Finally, cities
make provision for their paupers.
Another set of activities which most of us will as-
sign to the modem city, are the so-called utility func-
tions. The city must be a convenient place in which
to live and to carry on business. First and foremost,
b. conve- ^^ adequate supply of water for a multitude
nience. q£ domcstic, busiucss, and public needs must
be provided.^ The government may and usually does
^ In Shoreditch, a parish of London, the street sweepings and
the garbage are consumed at a central crematory, known as a
dust destructor, and are made to generate electricity for light-
ing that portion of the city, and to heat the public baths, wash-
house, and library of Shoreditch.
Other cities, of which Berlin is a notable example, have de-
veloped sewage farms, by pumping the sewage out into the
country and fertilizing waste tracts of land, which are thus made
capable of producing heavy crops. In these and other similar
ways, progressive municipalities are making waste material, the
disposal of which was a heavy drain upon the city, a source of
income.
^ Glasgow derives its water supply from beautiful Loch Ka-
trine, at a distance of thirty-four miles, thereby gaining an in-
exhaustible supply of pure water, sufficient not only for domestic
uses but manufacturing and municipal purposes as well ; and
Manchester has gone a hundred miles to tap Lake Thirlmere in
the English Lake Country. Not less interesting are the instances
of Boston's appropriation of the villages of Boylston and West
Boylston, in adding to its water supply, and the proposal of New
York to resort to the lakes of the AdirondOcQk^ 9X Catskills.
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 117
furnish this directly, but sometimes it simply super-
vises and controls a private water company. That
the supply of drinking water shall be kept pure
belongs really to the protective functions. Secondly,
there must be a sufficient number of streets conven-
iently placed to accommodate all the travel and traffic
of the city. The streets must be suitably paved and
well drained. No one feature more clearly differen-
tiates the enlightened from the unprogressive munici*
pality than does the character of the street system.
The great boulevards of Paris are a striking case in
point.^ If the size of the city requires a public trans-
portation service, the municipality must establish a
strict oversight and control of the company, or it may,
as in the case of Glasgow,^ itself own and direct the
system. The same is true of the lighting of the city.
These are functions which concern so closely the ma-
terial welfare of the people, that the neglect of them
may seriously cripple if it does not paralyze the busi-
ness interests of th^ city.
The next set of functions are introduced here, not
because they are necessarily next in importance, but
^ Paris was the first great municipality to teacb the value of
broad, park-like avenues. Her example has found many imita-
tors.
^ Unwilling to part with the control of its streets, Glasgow
constructed its own street car lines and leased them upon terms
highly favorable to the city's interests. Besides paying a yearly
rental of $750 per street mile, the operating company was re-
quired to pay interest upon the city's investment, lay aside a sum
each year for a sinking fund which should make good the entire
cost of the lines, and at the expiration of the lease to restore
them to the city as good as new. It is needless to say that such
& lease is without precedent in the history of American munici-
palities. When the lease expired in 1894, the city decided to
operate the lines itself and has done so ever since. — Albert Shaw,
. ^untctpaZ Government in Great Britain.
{
118 THE CITY,
because they are almost universally admitted to be de-
sirable. The modern city should be a beauti-
c. Beauty. , ,
Jill place in which to live.^ The architecture
of its public buildings must be impressive and ap-
propriate, and some control must be exercised over
private building rights. The landscape gardening of
its parks and avenues must strive to realize to the full
the aesthetic possibilities.' The placing of unsightly
advertisements, poles, and overhead wires should be
strictly regulated. Public monuments must be genu-
ine works of art and should be passed upon by a thor-
oughly competent art commission.
It is but a short step, and one frequently made, from
declaring that a city must be a beautiful place, to de-
manding that it shall be in other respects an enjoyable
d Recrea- pldcc in which to Uvc. To what extent it
'^^' should provide recreation for its inhabitants
is still much in dispute, but few people go so far as
to decry a system of pleasure gardens and parks for
^ How worthy an end, then, is municipal art for individual
and associated effort I Could man or woman, woman's club, or
civic organization, consecrate itself to higher purpose ? On
how many sides — moral, physical, intellectual, political, and
economic — does an effort for beauty in towns and cities touch
the welfare of mankind ! It is no new dream. The various civi-
lizations of the past have left in cities the record of their art.
We judge them, Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Mediseval, by the
degree of their urban culture, and do not consider that we shall
be judged as are they. There has only been a moment of for-
getfulness. In the newness of our country and the modern ten-
dency to commercialism, civic art was overlooked for a while.
We have begun now to remember ; and remembering, let us
strive to realize for a hundred reasons the vision of artist and
poet becoming humanity's — the dream of cities beautiful. In
the Bible itself the progress of mankind is represented as ending
in a celestial city, after having begun in a garden. — Charles
Mulford Robinson, The Improvement of Totons and CitieSf p. 292.
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 119
adults and playgrounds for children. Public baths
and swimming-pools are becoming common, and nu-
merous other facilities^ for promoting the health as
well as the pleasure of the people might be enumerated.
Next we come to the subject of education. Some
hold that a city should do little more than follow out
the state law concerning primary education. «, Educa-
Others demand that the city shall make of ^^'
itself an educational centre of ever increasing im-
portance, and this is at present by far the more popu-
lar view. Not only is the educational system made
complete from kindergarten to high school, but classes
for defectives are instituted, technical and trade
schools are sometimes established, school gardens and
iracation classes are provided, public libraries are com-
xnon, museums are coming to be more and more neces-
sary features, and some municipalities even provide
Jectures and concerts for the people.
Some cities have extended their activities into the
£eld of what might be denominated humanitarian and
charitable endeavor.^ Wood yards have been
started to give work to the unemployed, and
snodel lodging and tenement houses have been pro-
jected. Many English cities have public wash-houses
in which the poor may wash their clothes at a min-
imum expense.^ To many, these innovations seem an
^ Oatdoor gymnasiums are common. Under Mayor Quincy's
administration, a municipal camp for boys was established on
one of the islands in Boston Bay.
^ There has been a strong movement in the cities of the
United States, during recent hard times, to hurry necessary
public improvements in order to give work to the unemployed,
and at the same time to take advantage of low prices for the
benefit of the public. — Wilcox, The Study of City Government,
p. 40.
' In many British municipalities, public wash-houses are pro-
• 120 THE CITY.
unwise extension of the city's functions; by others,
they are deemed the test of a city's enlightenment. If
they can be so administered as to afford an oppor-
tunity for better living without weakening the self-
reliance of the beneficiaries, they would seem open to
little more objection than some of the functions
enumerated in previous paragraphs.
We have by no means exhausted the list of munici-
pal functions, but we have said enough to show some-
thing of the bewildering vastness and multifarious-
ness of the details with which a city government is
/ concerned.] The modern city has come to be a huge
corporation, carrying on a huge business with many
branches. [It is no wonder, then, that the organization
of the city government becomes a matter of great
importance, and to this we now turn.
American municipal governments derive their au-
thority from the state legislature, which either grants
V organixation them a spccial chartcr or allows them to be
gov^?*^ incorporated under a general statute.^] They
menta. ^^^ £qj. ^j^g most part coustructed on the
same general plan, though with many variations in
detail. [The three branches of government, legislative,
executive, and judicial, are more clearly defined than
in the local governments hitherto described.
vided to meet the needs of dwellers in one or two-roomed tene-
ments. Tbey contain bright, well-ventilated, and wholesome
workrooms, and are equipped with modem facilities for wash-
ing, drying, and mangling or ironing laundry. Here a woman
may do her entire family washing and ironing in two or three
hours, and pay less in fees than she would have paid for fuel
had she remained at home, while her living-room is saved the
steam, heat, and ill odors attendant upon wash-day in the tene-
ment.
^ In Missouri, California, Washington, and Minnesota, cities
are permitted by the state constitution to frame their own char-
ters, which must, however, be ratified by the state legislature.
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES, 121
The legislative body is the city council, consisting of
one or two chambers. When the latter is the case, the
upper and smaller chamber is usually called _
the board of aldermen, the other the common
council. A part of the council may be elected by the
city at large on a general ticket, but more commonly
its members represent the districts or wards of the
city in which they live. As a rule, the members hold
weekly meetings for the transaction of business. At
these meetings they pass local laws or ordinances
which correspond to the by-laws of the town ; they de-
termine the city's policy as to public works and per-
manent improvements ; they grant franchises to pri-
vate companies that wish to use the streets for street
railways and other public utilities ; and finally they
make appropriations for the city's expenses. The
scope and extent of the council's powers depend upon
the amount of self-government permitted by the city's
charter. Frequently this has been far from adequate to
meet the peculiar needs of the community. The state
legislature, by undertaking a share of local legislation,
has diminished the importance and influence of the
council and thereby made it less attractive as a sphere
of usefulness to the strong men of the community.
The nominal head of the executive department is
the mayor. He is elected by the voters of the city and
holds office generally for two years, but some- ^he mayor *
times for one or three years ; in a few cities, ^utf?e at'
notably St. Louis and Philadelphia, for four P^rtmenta.
years, and in Jersey City for even five years.] Under
the mayor are various heads of departments, — street
commissioners, assessors, overseers of the poor, etc., — l/
sometimes elected by the citizens, sometimes appointed
by the mayor or the city council, [or by both conjointly.
In addition to its legislative functions,] the council has
122 THE CITY.
some control over the heads of executive departments,
which it exercises through committees. Thus there
may be a committee upon streets, upon public build-
ings, upon parks or almshouses, or whatever the mu-
nicipal government is concerned with. The head of a
department is more or less dependent upon his com-
mittee, and in practice this is found to divide and
weaken responsibility. The heads of departments are
apt to be independent of one another and to owe no
allegiance in common to any one. The mayor, when
he appoints them, usually does so subject to the ap-
proval of the city council. The mayor is usually not
a member of the council, but can veto its enact-
ments, which can be passed over his veto by a supe-
rior majority, two-thirds or more.^ [The mayor, as we
have described him, is a weak executive. During the
last twenty years there has been a growing tendency
to clothe him with greatly increased powers.
Finally, the organization of city governments is made
complete by the formation of municipal or police courts,]
Municipal ^^ j^dgcs of which are sometimes appointed
courte. i^y ^jjg governor of the state to serve for life
or during good behavior, but usually elected by the
citizens for short terms. [These courts, rendered ne-
cessary by the more complex social relations existing
in a city, punish violations of ordinances and breaches
of the peace in a more summary way than is common
in other courts. Yet they are but a part of the state
judiciary, with limited civil and criminal jurisdiction.
Appeals may be made to the higher state courts.]
^ [In a number of cities a larger vote than two-thirds is ne-
cessary to overrule the veto. In Bridgeport, Connecticut, the
mayor has only a suspensive veto, — a bare majority of the
council may pass an ordinance over his veto. — Fairlie, Munici-
pal Administration, p. 417.]
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 123
City governments thus constituted are something
like state governments in miniature. The relation of
the mayor to the city council is somewhat like that of
the governor to the state legislature, and of the presi-
dent to the national congress.^ In theory, nothing
could well be more republican or more un- They are
like such city governments as those of New "^om*^t
York and Philadelphia before the Revolu- '^l.t'"'''
tion. Yet in practice it does not seem to ''orkweu.
work well. Our republican government, which after
making all due allowances seems admirably adapted
to rural districts, the states, and the nation, has cer-
tainly been far less successful as applied to cities. Yet
in all probability our cities are destined to increase in
number and to grow larger and larger. So that it be-
hooves us to study them as presenting problems that
had not been thought of when our general theory of
government was first worked out a hundred years ago,
but which, after we have been sufficiently taught by
experience, we may hope to succeed in solving just as
we have heretofore succeeded in other things. But be-
fore considering the specific defects of our city govern.,
ments, let us point out a few of the peculiar difficulties
of the problem, that we may see why we
might have been expected, up to the present cuitiesto'
time, to have been less successful in manag-
ing our great cities than in managing our rural com-
munities, and our states, and our nation.
In the first place, the problem is comparatively new,
and has taken us unawares. At the time of Wash-
1 [The centralization of administrative responsibility in the
mayor's office by recent charters is in imitation of our national
system. The division of the administrative responsibility among
independent city departments and boards is in imitation of the
commonwealth system. — Wilcox, The Study of City OovemmerU,
p. 192.]
124 THE CITY.
ington's inauguration to the presidency, there were no
large cities in the United States. Philadelphia had
a population of 42,000 ; New York had 33,000 ; Bos-
ton, which came next, with 18,000, was not yet a
city. Then came Baltimore, with 18,000, while Brook-
. Rapid ^y^ was a village of 1600 souls. Greater
Am^^ New York has to-day a population of near-
cities, ly 3^500,000; Philadelphia has more than
1,250,000 ; Boston has nearly 600,000 ; and Baltimore
•J more than 500,000. And consider how rapidly new
cities have been added to the list. One hardly need
mention the most striking cases, such as Chicago with
4000 inhabitants in 1840, and more than 1,600,000
in 1900; or Denver, with its miles of handsome
streets and shops, and not one native inhabitant who
has reached his fiftieth birthday. In 1790, about
3 persons out of every 100 lived in cities of 8000 or
over ; in 1900, about 33 out of every 100, while 47
out of every 100 lived in cities or incorporated vil-
lages ; that is, about half the population of the country
at present may be classed as urban. [This fact alone
is sufficient to emphasize the supreme importance of
the municipal problem. This tremendous develop-
ment, the result of world-wide industrial changes,
while not peculiar to the United States, found us by
reason of our inexperience less prepared to solve the
problems which it brought than were the older, more
highly organized, and more autocratic municipalities
of Europe.]
This rapidity of growth has entailed some important
Some con- cousequcnces. In the first place, it obliges
bl*^ex^Xd* the city to make great outlays of money in
from this order to get immediate results. Public works
growtt. must be undertaken with a view to quick-
ness rather than thoroughness. Pavements, sewers, and
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 126
reservoirs of some sort must be had at once, even if in-
adequately planned and imperfectly constructed ; and
so, before a great while, the work must be a- Lack of
J • a 1. j«i.' £ ' thorough-
done over again, bucn conditions of imper- ness.
ative haste would, we might expect, increase the temp-
tations to dishonesty as well as the liability ^ Errors in
to errors of judgment on the part of the men i^"»«°*-
who administer the public funds. Then the rapid
growth of a city, especially of a new city requiring the
immediate construction of a certain amount of public
works, almost necessitates the borrowing of ^ h^^^
money, and debt means heavy taxes. Now, *"®^
if a city has to tax heavily to pay its debts, it must cut
down its current expenses somewhere, and
the results are likely to be visible in more or practical
less untidiness and inefficiency. Lastly, much
wastefulness would naturally result from want of fore-
sight. It is not easy to predict how a city will grow,
or the nature of its needs a few years hence. Moreover,
even when it is easy enough to predict the results, it is
not easy to secure practical foresight on the part of
the city council elected for the current year ; its mem-
bers are afraid of making taxes too heavy this year,
and considerations of ten years hence are apt to be
dismissed as " visionary."
[That we may better understand some of the recent
attempts that have been made toward reconstructing
our theory of city government and improving
y . ^.. . .„ , ^ , ^ statement
its practical working, it will be worth our of actual
defects.
while to enumerate more fully the chief de-
fects in existing conditions, always remembering that
such generalized statements as we must use are not
equally true of all cities nor perhaps wholly true of
any one city. In the first place, we find upon exam-
ination that there do exist, as we were led to expect.
126 THE CITY.
f
I inefficiency and wastefulness, dishonesty and lack of
'\J foresight. Even the most superficial observer can see
how far short our cities fall of being clean, convenient,
and beautiful places to live in, and to him who looks
beneath the surface, there is revealed, in addition to
the incompetency of officials, an alarming dispropor-
tion between the sums raised by taxation and the
returns that are made to the community in schools,
streets, and other public utilities. He further dis-
covers that the resources of the city are squandered.
Valuable privileges or rights, such as the control of
streets or water-fronts, are permitted to pass to private
individuals, either because the community's represent-
atives have too little imagination to foresee the pro-
spective value of such franchises, or because they are
willing to advance their own political fortunes by trad-
ing in the city's resources.^ Official incompetency,
^ Gras, electric lighting, water supply, and street-car service are
instances of what are called public monopolies. They require
the use of more or less space on or under the public streets. The
right to use a city street is called a franchise. Such a business
is a monopoly because the original cost of building the works
and laying tracks and pipes and stretching wires is so great that
a company already established can easily prevent the success of
a rival company. A city may content itself with the attempt to
control these public utility corporations, as is suggested in the
text, but they have brought so much corrupt pressure to bear
upon the city council in their efforts to sec(ire favorable terms
for themselves that some people urge that the city itself should
own the public service lines. Public ownership has been little
practised in this country except in the case of the water supply.
Abroad, it is common, although by no means universal. Those
opposed to it say : —
First, that it would alter but not do away with the opporta-
nities for corruption. That, indeed, a business undertaking of
such financial magnitude as a street-car line or an electric light-
ing plant would demoralize most municipal administrations.
Second, that the members of our city government are neither
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 127
improvidence, greed, and corruption have been written
large in the history of many of our American cities.
In seeking the causes of these evils, he finds that
they are largely due to a pernicious method of select-
ing public officials. A candidate for mayor j,^ ^,,„^
or for a seat in the council, for instance, is *^*»«°'*
often not elected on his merit, but because he promises
to reward his supporters by giving them the offices at
his disposal. This practice, which converts an election
of the people's servants into a battle for plunder, is
fittingly called the spoils system. By it, the TheBpoOi
principal elective offices go not to those who ^'*®™-
are solicitous for the well-being of the people, but to
those who are ambitious to control the city's govern-
ment and handle its revenues ; and subordinates are
appointed, not because they are the ones best suited
in natnral ability nor in their attitude toward public administra-
tion the kind of men to manage economically and skilfully a
great business.
Third, that the result of public ownership would be, continued
if not increased corruption, poor service, extravagance, and con-
sequent high rates, and a worse despotism than that exerted by
private companies. -^
The advocates of public ownership answer that there is no
better way to arouse public interest in the government, and so
secure the election of honest and able officials, than by increasing
the power and responsibility of the government in matters that
vitally concern the average voter. Public ownership would, they
say, prove the salvation not only of the public monopolies but of
municipal government as well.
'< It is absolutely inevitable that a city should exercise a mea-
sure of control over the corporations which furnish public utili-
ties. It is also inevitable, with human nature as it is, that
these corporations should enter politics, in order to prevent this
control from taking forms which they look upon as hostile to
their interests. One peculiarity of the situation is this, that the
strongest elements in the community are directly and indirectly
interested in these private corporations." — Ely, The Coming City,
128 THE CITY.
by special training or experience to do well the work
assigned to them, but as a reward for political service.
It is such facts as these that lead us to paraphrase
the explanation of the hosier knight in the first chap-
/ "Too much ^^ 3,nd say that the root of all the trovhle is
V poutics." ^j^^ much politics. By a strange perversion
of its original meaning, a word which once signified a
knowledge of government, coupled with zeal for the
welfare of the governed, has come to suggest nothing
more admirable than the schemes of designing self-
seekers. In our cities at their worst estate, there has
been little or no comprehension of the fact that ^^ pub-
lic office is a public trust."
Additional opportunity is afforded the politician by
the confusion in the popular mind of national, state,
and local issues. The business-like adminis-
Gonfusion of ,
local with tration of the interests which most nearly
state and , _ ,
national affcct the health, convenience, and happiness
issues. , -
of the people has nothing whatever to do
with the success or failure of either of the great
political parties.^ And yet the plea is frequently made
^ In such cases citizens are apt to vote blindly for names
about which they know nothing except that they occur on a He-
publican or a Democratic ticket ; although, if the object of a
municipal election is simply to secure an upright and efBcient
municipal government, to elect a city magistrate because he is a
Republican or a Democrat is about as sensible as to elect him
because he believes in homceopathy or has a taste for chrysan-
themums.
Of course from the point of view of the party politician, it
•f§ quite different. Each party has its elaborate '< machine " for
electing state and national ofBcers ; and in order to be kept at
its maximum of efficiency the machine must be kept at work on
all occasions, whether such occasions are properly concerned
with differences in party politics or not. To the party politician
it of course makes a great difference whether a city magistrate
is a Republican or a Democrat. To him even the political com-
'/
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 129
that political parties are necessary in a democracy and
that effective party organization demands the main-
tenance of strict party discipline in connection with
politics of all grades, national, state, and local. This
plea is so plausible that good men differing upon the
tariff or other questions of national policy are fre-
quently prevented from acting together for the im-
provement of local conditions. Others, too independ-
ent to be controlled by party leaders, are powerless
against the political organization or ^^ machine," as it
is called. If they aspire to office, there is little chance
of success, since the professional politicians t^^ ^5^^^^
control the primaries at which candidates are the cityof***
nominated; and the prevailing practice of of^,^!Spo?
electing members of the council from sepa- |Spaw?citi-
rate districts or wards furthers the choice of *®°**
small politicians who are as eager to exchange per-
sonal favors with their colleagues as they are incapa-
ble of rising to any broad policy of municipal devel-
opment or administration. This has a tendency to
disgust many capable men, and the city in consequence
loses their services.
Certain features of the organization of our city
governments have helped to perpetuate the evils here
referred to. The first of these and probably
.1 j^i'j • 1 !••• r Defects of
the most disastrous is such a division of organization
authority between the different branches or to a division
officials of the city government as to make wui^'^"'
it practically impossible to call any one to 1. Theieds-
account for even the most flagrant instances executive
p • 1 T ^'i-T- •j.i_ "!_ branches.
of misrule. In case of jobbery, it has been
comparatively easy for the common council to shift
plexion of his mail-carrier is a matter of importance. But these
illustrations only show that party politics may be carried to ex-
tremes that are inconsistent with the best interests of the com-
180 THE CITY,
the blame to the mayor or some one of the executive
departments, or Tioe Tersa. The respectiye functions
of the legishitiTe and executive departments have not
always been clearly defined. The mayor's appoint-
ments of executive officers must usually be confirmed
by at least one branch of the city council.] These
executive officers have also been subject to more or
less control or oversight from committees of the city
couneiL Now, this system, in depriving the mayor of
power, deprived him of responsibility and left the
responsibility nowhere in particular. In making ap-
pointments, the mayor and council would come to some
sort of compromise with each other and would ex-
change favors with each other. Perhaps for private
reasons, incompetent or dishonest officers would get
appointed ; and if the citizens ventured to complain,
the mayor would say that he appointed as good men
as the council could be induced to confirm, and the
council would declare their willingness to confirm
good appointments if the mayor could only be per-
suaded to make them.
Then, the want of subordination of the different
executive departments has made it impossible to secure
unity of administration or to carry out any
dkerent consistcnt or generally intelligible policy.
tiTe depart- There has been no responsible head who
ments.
could be quickly and sharply called to ac-
count. Each official's hands have been so tied that
whatever went wrong, he could declare that it was not
his fault. The confusion has been enhanced by giving
executive work to committees or boards instead of to
single officers.
munity. Once in a while it becomes necessary to teach party
organizations to know their place, and to remind them that they
are not the lords and masters bnt the servants and instruments
ol the people. — Fzbke.
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 181
[Responsibility has been still further weakened by
the growing frequency with which the state legislature
interferes in the affairs of the city. This has 3 ^^ ^^
come about in two ways : First, the city, it JSoe legii-
will be remembered, is the creature of the ^*'*^
state legislature. From the legislature it derives its
charter. It is but natural, in cases of conspicuous
misrule, for the legislature to attempt to correct the
evil. Laws, wise ones for the most part, have been
passed limiting the possible indebtedness of the city,
and in some instances even the management of certain
departments of the city government has been assumed
by the legislature. Such precedents are all that the
politicians need to prompt them to extend still further
their control over the city, ostensibly for the city's
good, but often for purely partisan ends. ^ Secondly,
since the city has no powers except those expressly
granted in its charter, it must of necessity appeal to
the legislature for a special law whenever a new enter-
prise is projected. The mass of special legislation has
in consequence reached such proportions as to be both
confusing and demoralizing. Whatever may be urged
in support of such constant recourse to the legislature,
experience seems to prove that the end does not justify
the means. The average legislature is not competent
to take proper care of the government of cities, nor is
it sufficiently disinterested. Without doubt, such con-
trol increases immeasurably the chances for political
corruption.] A man fresh from his farm on the edge
of the Adirondacks knows nothing about the problems
pertaining to electric wires in Broadway or to rapid
transit between Harlem and the Battery ; and his con-
^ The city has been too often a pawn in the game of central
politics to be sacrificed in the interest of some presumed partisan^^^
political advantage. — Goodnow, Municipal Home Rule, p. 27.
182 THE CITY.
sent to desired legislation on sucli points can very
likely be obtained only by favoring some measure
which he thinks will improve the value of his farm, or
perhaps by helping him to debauch the civil service
by getting some neighbor appointed to a position for
which he is not qualified. All this is made worse by
the fact that the members of the state government are
generaUy less governed by a sense of responsibility
toward the citizens of a particular city than even the
worst local government that can be set up in such a city.
And, even if legislatures were otherwise competent to
manage the local affairs of cities, they have not time
enough amid the pressure of other duties to do justice
to such matters.^ [Finally, more serious than other
objections is the fact that such a policy is wrong in
principle, since it impairs the self-governing capacity
of the community .2
^ In 1870 the number of acts passed by the New Tbrk leg^la-
tnre was 808. Of these, 212, or more than one-fourth of the
whole, related to cities and villages. The 808 acts, when printed,
filled about 2,000 octavo pages; and of these, the 212 acts filled
more than 1,500 pages. This illustrates what is said above about
the vast quantity of details which have to be regulated in muni-
cipal government. Here we have more than three-fourths of the
volume of state legislation devoted to local affairs; and it hardly
need be added that a great part of these enactments were worse
than worthless, because they were made hastily and without due
consideration.
^ It is not intended to deny that there may be instances in
which the state government may advantageously participate in
the government of cities. It may be urged that, in the case of
great cities, like New York or Boston, many people who are not
residents either do business in the city or have vast business in-
terests there, and thus may be as deeply interested in its welfare
as any of the voters. It may also be said that state provisions
for city government do not always work badly. There are many
competent judges who approve of the appointment of police
commissioners by the executive of Massachusetts. There are
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES, 133
We have implied that the administration of a city :
should be business-like. This is precisely what it has ;
not been. No more striking contrast could be im-
agined than that which exists between the management
of a successful business corporation and the govern-
ment of the average American city. In the one, there
are rare executive ability, a policy that is Lack of
progressive without being wasteful, definitely ^JJ^S '
located responsibilities, skilled supervision of mi^tS^"
subordinates, a system of book-keeping which AmerfLm
will at any time reveal the exact status of ^^^
every department, and a corps of assistants whose ad-
vancement is made dependent upon the efficiency and
zeal which they show in promoting the success of their
employers. The average city has lacked all of these
advantages. When Berlin wanted a mayor, it ap-
pointed a man who had distinguished himself in the
same office in another German city.^ Such an appoint-
generally two sides to a question ; and to push a doctrine to ex-
tremes is to make oneself a doctrinaire rather than a wise citizen.
But experience clearly shows that in all doubtful cases it is safer
to let the balance incline in favour of local self-government than
the other way. — Fiske.
1 Professor R. T. Ely, in The Coming City, Appendix, p. 92,
gives the following translation of an advertisement in the jBer-
liner Tageblatt of July 17, 1891 :—
Official Notices.
Vacant Mayor's Position.
It is desired to fill at once the position of mayor in this city, to
whom are intrusted also the duties of the registration and vital
statistics office. The yearly salary is 4,800 marks, and the pen-
sion to which the mayor becomes entitled amounts to the same sum.
Candidates who have passed the second examination for the
higher judicial or administrative service are respectfully re-
quested to send in their applications, with a short sketch of their
life, not later than the 30th of August, to the undersigned.
The Chairman of the Municipal Council, Otto.
LncKSKWALDB, Jtdy 15, 1891.
; V'
184 THE CITY.
ment is almost inconceivable in America, and yet it
was business-like. This absence of business methods
in the management of our cities is the more inexcus-
able because of the proved business capacity of Amer^
icans. We have achieved the most brilliant and most
substantial successes in the field of private enterprise.
No undertaking has been too large or complex or diffi-
cult for us to cope with. It is at once our misfortune
and our humiliation that this splendid potential strength
has not responded in the hour of our greatest civic need.
Its failure to do so suggests another defect in existing
conditions more serious because more fundamental
than any of the others; that is, the lack of worthy
civic ideals, which place the conunon weal above con-
siderations of private interest. The apathy and irre-
sponsibility of good men has been and is the greatest
obstacle to be overcome in the reform of our city gov-
ernments.^
In spite of the tardiness of the American public in
recognizing the importance of city government, the
time has come at length when expert administrators
^ A great deal has been done to overcome the indifference of
the people by the various good government clubs which have been
formed in many cities of the country. Boards of Trade and
Chambers of Commerce are coming to realize that they cannot
better promote the business interests of their respective com-
munities than by purifying the city's politics. Scores of such
organizations are saying, " We shall not rest until our municipal
household is put in order." Notable, among other instances, has
been the work of the Merchants' Association of San Francisco in
securing a new and much better charter for their city, and of the
Municipal Voters' League in the reform of the City Council of
Chicago.
Women, also, are contributing their share towards the desired
end. By college settlements, tenement-house inspection, and in-
numerable humanitarian and educational projects, they are ren^
dering inestimable service.
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 186
and students of political science are turning their at-
tention to the careful study of municipal
problems. The many reform schemes pro- remedies
posed vary greatly in detail and even as to most reform-
certain fundamental principles, but they are ******
all substantially in accord upon the following points: —
1. Home Rule, The state legislature must be
brought to permit self-government in cities. That ^/
means that after the legislature has passed such gen-
eral laws and assumed such general responsibilities for
all cities of the state as may be deemed necessary, it
shall leave each municipality to make for itself any
special laws that it wants. The legislature shall not
tamper with the internal problems of any individual
city.
2. Better Men in City Offices and the City Council. /
a. The extension of the merit system to every pos-
sible appointive office. Under this system, candidates
are required to take appropriate civil service exami-
nations. The office either goes to the person who
passes the best examination or is assigned to one of
the three most successful candidates. By the latter
plan, some weight is given to such qualities in the
candidate as cannot appear in a written examination.
But either method practically abolishes the spoils sys-
tem. The candidate is chosen upon his individual
merits. By bringing nearly all offices under the merit
system, one great source of municipal corruption is re-
moved. Such offices should be made tenable during
good behavior. In this way there would be estab-
lished a permanent corps of minor officers performing
their duties with the efficiency that comes from long
experience.
b. The separation of municipal from state and na- sy
tional elections. This will help to emphasize munici-
V
186 THE CITY.
pal issues and to prevent their confusion with state
a/d national politics. It will tend to weaken the hold
political parties upon the municipality.
c. The reduction of the number of elective offices
to a minimum, in order that the attention of the
voter may not be dissipated among too many candi-
dates.
d. Nomination by citizens' petition, rather than in
party primaries. Any nominating petition signed by
the required number of voters, for example fifty, and
filed before a certain date, will entitle its nominee to a
place on the ballot. This is of course designed to
take nominations out of the hands of party leaders
and give them to the citizens at large.
e. Election of some or all of the members of the
council by general ticket. It is thought that in choos-
ing, for example, ten candidates from the city at large,
it would be possible to secure better and abler men
than by taking one from each of ten city wards, since
several of the best men in the city might live in the
same ward.
f . Proportional representation in the council. This
is an arrangement whereby each considerable party or
interest in the community is represented in the coun-
cil by a number of representatives proportionate to its
numerical strength. No one party is allowed to carry
the whole election, and no party, unless it is extremely
small, goes entirely unrepresented. There are various
schemes for bringing about proportional representa-
tion, all too complicated to be described here.
3. A Permanent or Continuous Council^ whose
members do not all go out of office at the same time.
This is to prevent any sudden or radical change in
policy, and to secure an experienced body of legis-
lators.
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 187
4. A Substantial Increase in the Legislative Pow-
firs of the Council. No board or commission should
be allowed ordinance-making powers, as is sometimes
the case at present. The gi*anting of Home Rule
would very greatly increase the responsibility and
authority of the council. Thus the present tendency
towards the weakening of the council would be checked,
and this would in turn be likely to attract a higher
grade of candidates for council seats.
5. Uniform Municipal Accounting. Municipal
book-keeping is in most cases astonishingly bad, so
bad, in fact, that the city accounts throw little light on
the manner in which the public money is expended.
Furthermore, each municipality keeps its accounts
according to a method of its own, and comparison be-
tween cities, which might be a most valuable means
of discovering the best and eliminating the bad in
municipal experiments, becomes impossible. It is
therefore urged that cities be brought to adopt a uni-
form method of accounting, and that all accounts be
kept with great accuracy and detail. Such accounts
should be open at all times to the voters, should be sent
in once a year to some state official, and should be by
him carefidly examined and reported to the legislature.
Most of these reforms, it will be seen, are of such a
nature as to bring the ordinary voter into closer touch
with his city government, both by giving him more di- \y
rect control and by weakening the hold of the national
parties. Most reformers agree that no great perma-
nent change can be gained until the civic conscience
is thoroughly awakened. Each voter must be made
to feel his individual responsibility and must be given
free opportunity to exercise it.
The most fundamental difference between reform-
ers is that which separates those who believe in a
/
188 THE CITY.
strong and independent mayor from those who be-
Twooppos- lieve in concentrating all municipal power
ingTiawi: j^ ^^ hands of the cooncil, with the mayor
somewhat in the position of an administrative agent
The latter plan ^ is modelled after the English muni-
cipal system, and has practically no examples in this
country at the present time, although in general out-
line it is not unlike the city organization of colonial
days. According to this plan, the council appoints the
1. concen. ^ayor, generaUy from its own number. He
JSiS^iS'the ^c*s under its direction and supervision, as
^^^^'^ does the whole of the executive department,
although he may have a veto power upon the acts of the
council. In this way a thoroughly centralized and har-
monious government is secured, with none of the friction
or waste due to the independent action of difiEerent de-
partments. With a thoroughly good and honest coun-
cil, this plan might work admirably, as it certainly does
in England. The popular distrust of our present city
councils, however, is so great that such a scheme stands
little chance of general adoption until the possibility
of purifying the council has been amply demonstrated.
The other plan ^ is diametrically opposed to this. It
is based upon the American principle of separation
of legislative and executive functions. It is
trationofad- clcarly Outlined in the Municipal Program
power in the drawu up by the JNationai Municipal League,
°^^°'* whose membership includes many of our best
known students and practical administrators in the
realm of city government. The Municipal Program
is founded for the most part upon experiments already
in operation in one American city or another. The
1 See Eaton, The Government of Municipalities,
2 See A Municipal Program, the report of a Committee of the
National Municipal League adopted November 17, 18d9.
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES. 189
best of these have been brought together and welded
into a harmonious whole. We have space only to note
its most distinctive features. The council is to retain
all the legislative powers outlined in the preceding
scheme, but it will have nothing to do with the admin-
istrative department except in so far as it votes all
appropriations and, through the controller whom it
appoints, supervises all expenditures. The mayor,
elected by the people once in two years, is absolute
head of the executive government, appointing all
heads of departments and making all removals en-
tirely on his own authority, although in the latter case
his^asons must be put on record. He is responsible
for the conduct of all executive departments, so that
if the administration prove unsatisfactory either as a
whole or in any part, the voters will know whom to
call to account ; while at the same time the appoint-
ing power being removed from the council, that body
will be largely deprived of opportunities for corrup-
tion. When we stop to consider how many of the
functions of city government are purely administra-
tive, we realize how great a degree of power is thus
placed in the hands of the mayor. It is believed that
by thus concentrating responsibility upon one man the
government will be made more rather than less demo-
cratic, since the voters will now be able to exert an
actual rather than a purely nominal control. It is
plain, however, that should so powerful a mayor prove
to be an unscrupulous politician or under the control
of party leaders, and should at the same time public
sentiment remain inert or indifferent, he might become
a most dangerous agent of corruption.
This whole subject of municipal reform is extremely <
difficult. The elimination of politics and the active i^
participation of good men in the government ai*e
140 THE CITY.
clearly the ends to be aimed at, and the specific reme^
dies heretofore proposed have this in view. How they
will work under all conceivable circumstances, we do
not know. What we do know positively is that the
subject is one of such vital and practical importance
to every dweller in our cities, if not to every citizen of
the country, that it cannot be safely disregarded any
longer. Eeform must be brought about, not alone if
the nation is to realize its destiny, but if the average
inhabitant of a city is to live in that reasonable secu-
rity and comfort which should belong to the civiliza-
tion of the twentieth century. And finally, whatever
aid may come from statesmen and scholars, and there
must be leaders, the reform when it is achieved will
be achieved by the mass of ordinary voters. No man
has the moral right in this emergency to consider
himself too insignificant or too much preoccupied or
too much a gentleman to throw himself heart and soul
into the thick of the battle.^]
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. Classify the fuDctions or activities required of the modem
city; give examples under each class.
2. What additional functions are performed by some cities ?
3. What can you say of the number and complexity of municipal
functions ?
4. Give an account of city government in the United States*
under the following heads: —
a. The source from which American cities derive their an-*
thority.
6. The three branches of government,
(i) The legislative : Of whom composed? How selected?
Its duties ? Limitations placed upon its exercise of
power ?
^ Dr. Edward Everett Hale said not long ago, " I believe in
the twentieth century no intelligent or decent man will sneak
out of his duties as a citizen."
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES, 141
(2) The executive : major, heads of departments, inferior
officials — how selected ? What connection between
legislative and executive ? Is the bond of union be-
tween the different members of the executive depart-
ment strong or weak ?
(3) The judicial.
c. The practical workings of American city governments: —
(i) The contrast they show between theory and nractice.
(2) The resemblance of the city government to that of
town, state, and nation.
(3) What marked difference do we note ?
(4) What reason is there for this difference ?
(5) Why may we expect as time goes on to surmount these
difficulties ?
d. The growth of American cities: —
(i) The cities of Washington's time and those of to-day.
(2) City growth since 1840.
(3) The proportion of people living in cities in 1790; in
1900.
e. Some consequences of rapid city growth: —
(i) The pressure to construct public works.
(2) The incurring of heavy debts.
(3) The wastefulness due to lack of foresight.
f. Defects in city government: —
(i) Name some of the most obvious defects.
(2) What cause does the inquirer discover for these evils ?
(3) What may be said to be the " root of all the trouble " ?
(4) What plausible argument is nevertheless used to up-
hold present conditions ?
(5) Why do not the good citizens of a town strive to bring
about immediate reform ?
(6) Defects in the organization of our city governments
which foster the evils already mentioned.
(7) What difficulties have arisen through the state control
of cities ?
(8) What conditions have fostered such control ?
(9) Why is such control dangerous ?
(10) Why is it inherently bad in principle ?
(11) Compare American city governments with private cor-
porations.
(12) In the last analysis, what do we find to be the greatest
obstacle to reform ?
142 THE CITY.
g. Some of the proposed remedies: —
(i) Home rale.
(2) Means of securing better men in city offices and the city
council.
(3) A permanent council.
(4) Increased legislative powers of council.
(5) Uniform municipal accounting.
(6) £ffect of the above reforms on the individual voter.
(7) The two camps into which reformers are divided.
(8) Discuss plan of concentrating municipal power in
council.
(9) Discuss plan outlined in the Municipal Program.
h. What should be the attitude of the individual voter toward
municipal problems ?
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS AND DIBECTIONS.
(Chiefly for pupib who live in cities.)
1. When was your city organized ?
2. Give some account of its growth, its size, and its present
population. How many wards has it ? Give their boun-
daries. In which ward do you live ?
3. Examine its charter, and report a few of its leading provi-
sions.
4. What description of government in this chapter comes nearest
to that of your city ?
5. Consider the suggestions about the study of town government
(pp. 43, 44), and act upon such of them as are applicable
to city government.
6. What is the general impression about the purity of your city
government ? (Consult several citizens and report what
you find out.)
7. What important caution should be observed about vague
rumours of inefficiency or corruption ?
8. What are the evidences of a sound financial condition in a
city ?
9. Is the financial condition of your city sound ?
10. When debts are incurred, are provisions made at the same
time for meeting them when due ?
1 1. What are " sinking funds " ?
12. What wants has a city from which a town is free ?
THE GOVERNMENT OF CITIES, 143
13. Describe your system of public water works, making an
analysis of important points that may be presented. How
many gallons of water per capita are daily used in your
city ? Compare the water works of London with those
of Glasgow. See Shaw's Municipal Government in Great
Britain,
14. Do the same for your park system or any other system that
involves a long time for its completion as well as a great
outlay. What can you say of the provision for play-
grounds made by New York city ? See Zueblin, American
Municipal Progress, ch. ix,
15. Are the principles of civil service reform recognized in your
city ? If so, to what extent ? Do they need to be ex-
tended further ?
16. Describe the parties that contended for the supremacy in your
last city election and tell what questions were at issue
between them.
I7< What great corporations exert an influence in your city af-
fairs ? Is such influence bad because it is great ? What
is a possible danger from such influence ?
18. In view of the vast number and range of city interests, what
is the most that the average citizen can reasonably be
asked to know and to do about them ? What things is
it indispensable for him to know and to do if he is to con-
tribute to good government ?
19* Oive the arguments for and against a municipal theatre, a
municipal gymnasium, a municipal street railway system.
20. What arguments are there for municipal wood-yards and
other forms of relief to the unemployed ?
21. flow would you criticise the architecture of your city ? Does
it represent different periods ? Which are better speci-
mens architecturally, the older or newer buildings ? Name
some of the worst and some of the best specimens. In the
case of the best specimens, does their environment add
to or detract from their beauty ? Criticise similarly the
statues and public monuments in your city.
22. What measures are taken in your city to preserve the shade
trees and to add to their number ?
^3' Are your city streets clean ? What effort is made to keep
them so ?
24. What is done with the sewage and garbage of your city ? Is
it made to yield any revenue ?
144 THE CITY,
25. Are there large tenement-houses in your city ? Are they
overcrowded? What provisions are made for securing
light and ventilation in these tenements ?
26. Enumerate all the ways in which your city provides for the
pleasure of its inhabitants.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.
§ 1. Direct and Indirect Government. — The transition
from direct to indirect government, as illustrated in the devel-
opment of a township into a city, may be profitably studied in
Quincy's Municipal History of Boston^ Boston, 1852 ; and in
Winsor's Memorial History of Boston, iii. 189-302, Boston, 1881.
§ 2. Origin of Engush Boroughs and Cities. — See
Loftie's History of London, 2 vols., London, 1883 ; Toulmin
Smith's English Gilds, London, 1870 ; and the histories of the
English Constitution, especially those of Gneist, Stubbs, Taswell-
Langmead, and Hannis Taylor.
§ 3. Government of Cities in the United States.—
/. H. U. Studies, III., xi.-xii., J. A. Porter, The City of Wash-
ington ; IV., iv. , W. P. Holcomb, Pennsylvania Boroughs ; IV., x.,
C. H. Levermore, Town and City Government of New Haven ;
v., i.-ii., Allinson and Penrose, City Government of Philadelphia ;
v., iii., J. M. Bugbee, The City Government of Boston ; V., iv.,
M. S. Snow, The City Government of St. Louis ; VII., ii.-iii., B.
Moses, Establishment of Municipal Government in San Francisco;
VII., iv., W. W. Howe, Municipal History of New Orleans ; also
Supplementary Notes, No. 4, Seth Low, The Problem of City Gov-
ernment (compare No. 1, Albert Shaw, Municipal Government in
England), See, also, the supplementary volumes published at
Baltimore, — Levermore's New Haven, 1886, Allinson and Pen-
rose's Philadelphia, 1887. See, also, Eaton's Government of Muni-
cipalities, N. Y., 1899 ; Wilcox's Study of City Government, N. Y.,
1897 ; Chapman's Practical Agitation, N. Y., 1900 ; Shaw's Muni-
cipal Government in Great Britain, N. Y., 1895 ; Shaw's Municipal
Government in Continental Europe, N. Y., 1895 ; Fairlie's Muni-
cipal Administration, 1901 ; Goodnow's Municipal Home Rule,
N. Y., 1897 ; Goodnow's Municipal Problems, N. Y., 1897 ; Con-
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE. 146
kling's City Government in the United States, N.Y., 1899 ; A Muni-
cipal Program, the Report of a Committee of the National Muni-
cipal League, which contains the model charter and papers in
its support, N. y., 1900 ; Proceedings of the National Municipal
League, Philadelphia, 1894-1903 ; Parsons' The City for the
People, Philadelphia, 1900 ; Bemis (Editor), Municipal Mono-
polies, N. y., 1899 ; Ely's The Coming City,
For a bibliography including books, pamphlets, and periodic
literature dealing with municipal art, education, charities, the
settlement movement, the housing problem, public utilities, mu-
nicipal ownership, finance, the organization and administration
of the city, and kindred topics, see, A Bibliography of Municipal
Problems and City Conditions, by Robert C. Brooks, Municipal
Affairs, vol. v., No. 1.
CHAPTER VI.
THE STATE.
§ 1. The Colonial Governments.
In the year 1600 Spain was the only European na-
tion which had obtained a foothold upon the part of
North America now comprised within the
Spain to the Umted otatcs. bpam claimed the whole
P088688i0n mm
Of North continent on the strength of the bulls of
1493 and 1494, in which Pope Alexander
YI. granted her all countries to be discovered to the
west of a certain meridian which happens to pass a
little to the east of Newfoundland. From their first
centre in the West Indies the Spaniards had made a
lodgment in Florida, at St. Augustine, in 1565 ; and
from Mexico they had in 1605 founded Santa F^, in
what is now the territory of New Mexico.
France and England, however, paid little heed to the
claim of Spain. France had her own claun to
Claims of •*■ , ,
^Mice and North America, based on the voyages of dis-
covery made by Verrazano in 1524 and Car-
tier in 1534, in the course of which New York harbour
had been visited and the St. Lawrence partly explored.
England had a stiU earUer claim, based on the dis-
covery of the North American continent in 1497 by
John Cabot. It presently became apparent that to
make such claims of any value, discovery must be
followed up by occupation of the country. Attempts
THE COLONIAL GOVERNMENTS. 147
at colonization had been made by French Protestants
in Florida in 1562-65, and by the English in North
Carolina in 1584-87, but both attempts had failed
miserably. Throughout the sixteenth century French
and English sailors kept visiting the Newfoundland
fisheries, and by the end of the century the French and
English governments had their attention definitely
turned to the founding of colonies in North America.
In 1606 two great joint-stock companies were
formed in England for die purpose of planting such
colonies. One of these companies had its head-
quarters at London, and was called the Lon- xheLondoii
don Company ; the other had its headquar- ^^JS-
ters at the seaport of Plymouth, in Devon- ^*°*~*
shire, and was called the Plymouth Company. To
the London Company the king granted the coast of
North America from 34° to 38° north latitude ; that
is, about from Cape Fear to the mouth of the Bappa-
hannock. To the Plymouth Company he granted
the coast from 41° to 45° ; that is, about from the
mouth of the Hudson to the eastern extremity of
Maine. These grants were to go in straight strips or
zones across the continent from the Atlantic Ocean to
the Pacific. Almost nothing was then known about
American geography; the distance from ocean to
ocean across Mexico was not so very great, and peo-
ple did not realize that further north it was quite a
different thing. As to the middle strip, starting from
the coast between the Eappahannock and the Hudson,
it was open to the two companies, with the imder-
standing that neither was to plant a colony within
100 miles of any settlement already begun by the
other. This meant practically that it was likely to
be controlled by whichever company should first come
Into the field with a flourishing colony. Accordingly
148 THE STATE.
both companies made haste and sent out settlers in
1607, the one to the James River, the other to the
Kennebec. The first enterprise, after much suffering,
resulted in the founding of Virginia ; the second ended
in disaster, and it was not until 1620 that the Pil-
grims from Leyden made the beginnings of a per-
manent settlement upon the territory of the Plymouth
Company.
These two companies were at first organized under
a single charter. Each was to be governed by a
council in England appointed by the king, and these
coimcils were to appoint coimcils of thirteen to reside
_ . in the colonies, with powers practically un-
Their com* , , ' x x */
monchar- limited. Nevertheless the king covenanted
with his colonists as follows : " Also we do,
for us, our heirs and successors, declare by these
presents that all and every the persons, being our
subjects, which shall go and inhabit within the said
colony and plantation, and every their children and
posterity, which shall happen to be bom within any
of the limits thereof, shall have and enjoy all liber-
ties, franchises, and immunities of free denizens and
natural subjects within any of our other dominions,
to all intents and purposes as if they had been abid-
ing and born within this our realm of England, or in
any other of our dominions." This principle, that
British subjects born in America should be entitled
to the same political freedom as if born in England,
was one upon which the colonists always insisted, and
it was the repeated and persistent attempts of George
III. to infringe it that led the American colonies to
revolt and declare themselves independent of Great
Britain.
Both the companies founded in 1606 were short-
lived. In 1620 the Plymouth Company got a new
THE COLONIAL GOVERNMENTS. 149
charter, which made it independent of the London
Company. In 1624 the king, James I., quarrelled
with the London Company, brought suit
agamst it in court, and obtained from the of the two
subservient judges a decree annulling its
charter. In 1635 the reorganized Plymouth Com-
pany surrendered its charter to Charles I. in pursu-
ance of a bargain which need not here concern us.^
But the creation of these short-lived companies left an
abiding impression upon the map of North America
and upon the organization of civil government in the
United States. Let us observe what was
1 •11-1 • • ^ • t Settlement
done with the three strips or zones into which of the three
the country was divided : the northern or
New England zone, assigned to the Plymouth Com*
pany ; the southern or Virginia zone, assigned to the
London Company ; and the central zone, for which
the two companies were, so to speak, to run a race.
In the northern zone the colonies of Plymouth and
Massachusetts Bay were founded by emigration from
England between 1620 and 1630 ; and then in 1633-
38 Connecticut, Providence, and Bhode Island were
founded by emigration from Massachusetts.
1. The
Presently, in 1643, Providence and Bhode northern
Island voluntarily united into one common-
wealth ; and in 1662 New Haven, originally founded in
1637 by emigration from England, was annexed to
Connecticut by Charles II. Certain towns along the
northeast coast, founded under royal grants to individ-
ual proprietors, were for some time practically a part
of Massachusetts, but in 1679 a part of this region
was erected by Charles II. into the royal province of
New Hampshire. The remainder, under the name of
Maine, was in 1692 confirmed to Massachusetts, to
^ See mj Beginnings of New England, p. 112.
160 THE STATE.
which Plymouth was at the same time amiexed. Thus,
before the Revolution, four of the original thirteen
states — Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island,
and New Hampshire — had been constituted in the
northern zone.
In 1663 Charles 11. cut off the southern part of
Virginia, the area covering the present states of North
and South Carolina and Georgia, and it was formed
into a new province called Carolina. In
Muthem 1729 the two eroups of settlements which
had grown up along its coast were defim-
tively separated into North and South Carolina ; and in
1732 the frontier portion toward Florida was organ-
ized into the colony of Georgia. Thus four of the
original thirteen states — Virginia, the two Carolinas,
and Georgia — were constituted in the southern zone.
To this group some writers add Maryland, founded
in 1632, because its territory had been claimed by the
London Company; but the earliest settlements in
Maryland, its principal towns, and almost the whole
of its territory, come north of latitude 38^ and withm
the middle zone.
Between the years 1614 and 1621 the Dutch founded
their colony of New Netherland upon the territory in-
cluded between the Hudson and Delaware rivers, or,
8. The mid- ^^ they quitc naturally called them, the North
die zone. ^^ g^^^j^ TtvGT^. They pushcd their out-
posts up the Hudson as far as the site of Albany,
thus intruding far into the northern zone. In 1638
Sweden planted a small colony upon the west side of
Delaware Bay, but in 1655 it was surrendered to the
Dutch. Then in 1664 the English took New Nether-
land from the Dutch, and Charles II. granted the
province to his brother, the Duke of York. The duke
proceeded to grant part of it to his friends, Berkeley
THE COLONIAL GOVERNMENTS. 161
and Carteret, and thus marked o£E the new colony of
New Jersey, In 1681 the region west of New Jersey
was granted to William Penn, and in the following
year Penn bought from the Duke of York the small
piece of territory upon which the Swedes had planted
their colony. Delaware thus became an appendage
to Penn's greater colony, but was never merged in it.
Thus five of the original thirteen states — Maryland,
New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware
— were constituted in the middle zone.
As we have already observed, the westward move-
ment of population in the United States has largely
followed the parallels of latitude, and thus the charac-
teristics of these three original strips or zones have,
with more or less modification, extended westward.
The men of New England, with their Portland and
Salem reproduced more than 3000 miles distant in the
state of Oregon, and within 100 miles of the Pacific
Ocean, may be said in a certain sense to have realized
literally the substance of King James's grant to the
Plymouth Company. It will be noticed that the kinds
of local government described in our earlier chapters
are characteristic respectively of the three original
zones : the township system being exemplified chiefly
in the northern zone, the county system in the south-
em zone, and the mixed township-county system in
the central zone.
The London and Plymouth companies did not perish
until after state governments had been organized in
the colonies already founded upon their territories.
In 1619 the colonists of Virginia, with the aid of the
more liberal spirits in the London. Company,
_ - '^ _ , ^ , Honae of
secured for themselves a representative Bargesaesin
government. To the governor and his coun-
cil, appointed in England, there was added a general
152 THE STATE.
assembly composed of two burgesses from each ^ plaor
tation," ^ elected by the inhabitants. This assembly,
the first legislative body that ever sat in America, met
on the 30th of July, 1619, in the choir of the rude
church at Jamestown. The dignity of the burgesses
was preserved, as in the House of Commons, by sit-
ting with their hats on ; and after offering prayer,
and taking the oath of allegiance and supremacy, ihey
proceeded to enact a number of laws relating to pub-
lic worship, to agriculture, and to intercourse with the
Indians. Curiously enough, so confident was the be-
lief of the settlers that they were founding towns, that
they called their representatives "burgesses," and down
to 1776 the assembly continued to be known as the
House of " Burgesses," although towns refused to grow
in Virginia, and soon after counties were organized in
1634 the burgesses sat for counties. Such were the
beginnings of representative government in Virginia.
The government of Massachusetts is descended from
the Dorchester Company formed in England in 1623,
for the ostensible purpose of trading in furs and timber
and catching fish on the shores of Massachusetts Bay.
After a disastrous beginning this company was dis-
solved, but only to be immediately reorganized on a
greater scale. In 1628 a grant of the land between the
Charles and Merrimack rivers was obtained
Maflsachu- from the Plymouth Company ; and in 1629 a
charter was obtained from Charles I. So
many men from the east of England had joined in the
^ The word " plantation " is here used, not in its later and
ordinary sense, as the estate belonging to an individual planter,
but in an earlier sense. In this early usage it was equi^^ent to
*' settlement." It was used in New England as well as in Yir*
ginia ; thus Salem was spoken of by the court of assistants in
1629 as " New England's Plantation."
THE COLONIAL GOVERNMENTS. 158
enterprise that it could no longer be fitly called a Dor-
chester Company. The new name was significantly
taken from the New World. The charter created a cor-
poration under the style of the Governor and Company
of Massachusetts Bay in New England. The freemen
of the Company were to hold a meeting four times a
year ; and they were empowered to choose a governor,
a deputy governor, and a council of eighteen assistants,
who were to hold their meetings each month. They
could administer oaths of supremacy and allegiance,
raise troops for the defence of their possessions, admit
new associates into the Company, and make regulations
for the management of their business, with the vague
and weak proviso that in order to be valid their enact-
ment must in no wise contravene the laws of England.
Nothing was said as to the place where the Company
should hold its meetings, and accordingly after a few
to New England, in order that it might carry out its
intentions with as little interference as possible on the
part of the crown.
Whether this transfer of the charter was legally
justifiable or not is a question which has been much
debated, but with which we need not here vex our-
selves. The lawyers of the Company were shrewd
enough to know that a loosely-drawn instrument may
be made to admit of great liberty of action. Under
the guise of a mere trading corporation the Puritan
leaders deliberately intended to found a civil com-
monwealth in accordance with their own theories of
government.
After their arrival in Massachusetts, their numbers
increased so rapidly that it became impossible to have
a primary assembly of aU the freemen, and so a rep-
resentative assembly was devised after the model of
164 THE STATE.
the Old English county court. The representatives
sat for townships, and were called deputies. At
first they sat in the same chamber with the
Of MMMk assistants, but in 1644 the legislative body
General* was divided into two chambers, the depu-
ties forming the lower house, while the upper
was composed of the assistants, who were some-
times called magistrates. In elections the candidates
for the upper house were put in nomination by the
General Court and voted on by the freemen. In gen-
eral the assistants represented the common or central
power of the colony, while the deputies represented
the interests of popular self-government. The former
was comparatively an aristocratic and the latter a
democratic body, and there were frequent disputes
between the two.
It is worthy of note that the governing body thus
constituted was at once a legislative and a judicial
body, like the English county court which served as
its model. Inferior courts were organized at an early
date in Massachusetts, but the highest judicial tribu-
nal was the legislature, which was known as the Gen-
eral Court. It stiU bears this name to-day, though it
long ago ceased to exercise judicial functions.
Now as the freemen of Massachusetts directly chose
their governor and deputy-governor, as well as their
chamber of deputies, and also took part in choosing
their council of assistants, their government was vir-
tually that of an independent republic. The crown
oould interpose no efEective check upon its proceed-
ings except by threatening to annul its charter and
send over a viceroy who might be backed up, if need
be, by military force. Such threats were sometimes
openly made, but oftener hinted at. They served to
make the Massachusetts government somewhat waiy
THE COLONIAL GOVERNMENTS. 155
and circumspect, but they did not prevent it from
pursuing a very independent policy in many respects,
as when, for example, it persisted in allowing none
but members of the Congregational church to vote.
This measure, by which it was intended to preserve the
Puritan policy imchanged, was extremely distasteful
to the British government. At length in 1684 the
Massachusetts charter was annulled, an attempt was
made to suppress town-meetings, and the colony was
placed under a military viceroy. Sir Edmund Andros,
After a brief period of despotic rule, the Sevolution
in England worked a change. In 1692 Mas-
sachusetts received a new charter, quite dif- of Masaa-
ferent from the old one. The people were
allowed to elect representatives to the General Court,
as before, but the governor and lieutenant-governor
were appointed by the crown, and all acts of the legis-
lature were to be sent to England for royal approval.
The general government of Massachusetts was thus,
except for its possession of a charter, made similar
to that of Virginia.
The governments of Connecticut and Bhode Island
were constructed upon the same general plan as the
first ffovemment of Massachusetts. Gov- ^ _^ ^
Gonnecticut
emors, councils, and assemblies were elected »nd Rhode
Island.
by the people. These governments were
made by the settlers themselves, after they had come
out from Massachusetts ; and through a very singular
combination of circumstances,^ they were confirmed
by charters granted by Charles II. in 1662, soon after
his return from exile. So thoroughly republican were
these governments that they remained without change
until 1818 in Connecticut and imtil 1842 in Bhode
Island.
^ See my Beginnings qf New England, pp« 102-196.
166 THE STATE.
We thus observe two kinds of state goyemmeut in
the American colonies. In both kinds the people
choose a representative legislative assembly ; but in
the one kind they also choose their governor, while in
the other kind the governor is appointed by the crown.
We have now to observe a third kind.
After the downfaU of the two great companies
founded in 1606, the crown had a way of
^Atine in handing over to its friends extensive tracts
^'^ of land in America. In 1632 a charter
granted by Charles I. to Cecilius Calvert, Lord Balti-
more, founded the palatinate colony of Maryland. To
understand the nature of this charter, we must observe
that among the counties of England there were three
whose rulers from an early time were allowed special
privileges. Because Cheshire and Durham bordered
upon the hostile countries, Wales and Scotland, and
needed to be ever on the alert, their rulers, the earls
of Chester and the bishops of Durham, were clothed
with almost royal powers of command, and similar
powers were afterwards granted through favouritism
to the dukes of Lancaster. The three counties were
called counties palatine (i. e. "palace counties").
Before 1600 the earldom of Chester and the duchy of
Lancaster had been absorbed by the crown, but the
bishopric of Durham remained the type of an almost
independent state, and the colony palatine of Mary-
Charter of ^^^^^ ^^^ modelled after it. The charter of
Maryland. Maryland conferred upon Lord Baltimore
the most extensive privileges ever bestowed by the
British crown upon any subject. He "was made
absolute lord of the land and water within his bound-
aries, could erect towns, cities, and ports, make war
or peace, call the whole fighting population to arms
and declare martial law, levy tolls and duties, estab-
THE COLONIAL GOVERNMENTS. 167
lish courts of justice, appoint judges, magistrates,
and other civil officers, execute the laws, and pardon
ofEenders. He could erect manors, with courts-baron
and courts-leet, and confer titles and dignities, so that
they differed from those of England. He could make
laws with the assent of the freemen of the province,
and, in cases of emergency, ordinances not impairing
life, limb, or property, without their assent. He could
found churches and chapels, have them consecrated
according to the ecclesiastical laws of England, and
appoint the incimibents." ^ For his territory and
these royal powers Lord Baltimore was to send over
to the palace at Windsor a tribute of two Indian
arrows yearly, and to reserve for the king one fifth
part of such gold and silver as he might happen to
get by mining. *' The king furthermore bound him-
self and his successors to lay no taxes, customs, sub-
sidies, or contributions whatever upon the people of
the province, and in case of any such demand being
made, the charter expressly declared that this clause
might be pleaded as a discharge in full." Maryland
was thus almost an independent state. Baltimore's
title was Lord Proprietary of Maryland, and his title
and powers were made hereditary in his family, so
that he was virtually a feudal king. His rule, how-
ever, was effectually limited. The government of
Maryland was carried on by a governor and a two-
chambered legislature. The governor and the mem-
bers of the upper house of the legislature were ap-
pointed by the lord proprietary, but the lower house
of the legislature was elected, here as elsewhere, by
the people ; and in accordance with time-honoured
English custom all taxation must originate in the
lower house, which represented the people.
* Browne's Maryland: the History of a Palatinate^ p. 19.
168 THE STATE.
Half a century after the founding of Maryland,
similar though somewhat less extensive proprietary
ohArte f P^^®^** yrere granted by Charles II. to Wil-
Pexmsyip Ham Penu, and under them the colony of
Pennsylvania was founded and Delaware
was purchased. Pennsylvania and Delaware had each
its house of representatives elected by the people;
but there was only one governor and council for the
two colonies. The governor and council were ap-
pointed by the lord proprietary, and as the council
confined itself to advising the governor and did not
take part in legislation, there was no upper house.
The legislature was one-chambered. The office of
lord proprietary was hereditary in the Penn family.
For about eighty years the Penns and Calverts
quarrelled, like true sovereigns, about the boundary-
line between their principalities, until in 1763 the
matter was finally settled. A line was agreed upon,
Mason and ^^^ *^® survcy was made by two distin-
Dixoii»8iine. guighed mathematicians, Charles Mason and
Jeremiah Dixon. The line ran westward 244 miles
from the Delaware Biver, and every fifth milestone
was engraved with the arms of Penn on the one side
and those of Calvert on the other. In later times,
after all the states north of Maryland had abolished
slavery, Mason and Dixon's line became famous as
the boundary between slave states and free states.
At first there were other proprietary colonies be-
sides those just mentioned, but in course of time the
^^^ ^ rights or powers of their lords proprietary
prietarygov- wcrc rcsumcd bv the crown. When New
Netherland was conquered from the Dutch
it was granted to the duke of York as lord proprie-
tary; but after one-and-twenty years the duke as-
cended the throne as James II., and so the part of
THB COLONIAL GOVERNMENTS. 1*59
the colony which he had kept became the royal prov-
ince of New York. The part which he had sold to
Berkeley and Carteret remained for a while the pro-
prietary colony of New Jersey, sometimes under one
government, sometimes divided between two ; but the
rule of the lords proprietary was very unpopular, and
in 1702 their rights were surrendered to the crown.
The Carolinas and Georgia were also at first proprie-
tary colonies, but after a while they willingly came
under the direct sway of the crown. In general the
proprietary governments were unpopular because the
lords proprietary, who usually lived in England and
visited their colonies but seldom, were apt to regard
their colonies simply as sources of personal income.
This was not the case with William Penn, or the
earlier Calverts, or with James Oglethorpe, the illus«
trious founder of Georgia ; but it was too often the
case. So long as the lord's rents, fees, and other
emoluments were duly collected, he troubled himself
very little as to what went on in the colony. If that
had been all, the colony would have troubled itself
very little about him. But the governor appointed
by this absentee master was liable to be more devoted
to his interests than to those of the people, and the
civil service was seriously damaged by worthless
favourites sent over from England for whom tiie gov-
emor was expected to find some office that would pay
them a salary. On the whole, it seemed less unsatis-
factory to have the governors appointed by the crown;
and so before the Kevolutionary War all the pro-
prietary governments had fallen, except those of the
Penns and the Calverts, which doubtless survived be-
cause they were the best organized and best admin-
istered.
There were thus at the time of the Kevolutionary
160 THE STATE.
War three forms of state government in the Ameii-
AtUMtime can colonies. There were, ^rs^, the Bepubli-
tatianSr**" ^^^ colonies, in which the governors were
toSL^dT* elected by the people, as in Rhode Island and
S^St^T Connecticut ; secondly^ the Proprietary colo-
Re^bucan, nics, in which the governors were appointed
^^ by hereditary proprietors, as in Maryland,
Pennsylvania, and Delaware ; thirdly^ the
Boyal colonies,^ in which the governors were appointed
by the cyown, as in Georgia, the two Carolina^, Vir-
ginia, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, and New
Hampshire. It is customary to distinguish the Eepub-
lican colonies as Charter colonies, but that is not an
accurate distinction, inasmuch as the Proprietary colo-
nies also had charters. And among the Boyal colonies,
Massachusetts, having been originally a republic, still
had a charter in which her rights were so defined as to
place her in a somewhat different position from the
other Royal colonies ; so that Prof. Alexander John-
ston, with some reason, puts her in a class by herself
as a SemirToyal colony.
These differences, it will be observed, related to the
character and method of filling the governor's office.
In- the Republican colonies the governor naturally
represented the interests of the people, in the Pro-
inau three pri^tary colonics he was the agent of the
^^^^'P Penns or the Cal verts, in the Royal colonies
J2SSbSr ^® ^^® *^^ agent of the king. All the thir-
jSd^ki-'*** *®®^ colonies alike had a legislative assem^
poee taxes, yy elected by the people. The basis of rep-
resentation might be different in different colonies, as
^ Or, as they were sometimes called, Royal provinces. In the
history of Massachusetts many writers distinguish the period
before 1692 as the colonial period, and the period 1692 to 1774
as the provincial period.
THE COLONIAL GOVERNMENTS, 161
we have seen that in Massachusetts the delegates rep-
resented townships, whereas in Virginia they repre-
sented counties ; but in all alike the assembly was a
truly representative body, and in all alike it was the
body that controlled the expenditure of public money.
These representative assemblies arose spontaneously
because the founders of the American colonies were
Englishmen used from time immemorial to tax them-
selves and govern themselves. As they had been
wont to vote for representatives in England, instead
of leaving things to be controlled by the king, so now
they voted for representatives in Maryland or New
York, instead of leaving things to be controlled by
the governor. The spontaneousness of all this is
quaintly and forcibly expressed by the great Tory his-
torian Hutchinson, who tells us that in the year 1619 a
house of burgesses hrolce out in Virginia ! as if it had
been the mumps, or original sin, or any of those things
that people cannot help having.
This representative assembly was the lower house
in the colonial legislatures. The governor always had
a council to advise with him and assist him in his execu-
tive duties, in imitation of the king's privy
council in England. But in nearly all the ©r's councu
, , , , "^ was a kind
colonies this council took part in the work of upper
. 1 . 1 . ., 1 houae.
of legislation, and thus sat as an upper
house, with more or less power of reviewing and
amending the acts of the assembly. In Pennsylvania,
as already observed, the council refrained from this
legislative work, and so, until some years after the
Revolution, the Pennsylvania legislature was one-
chambered. The members of the council were ap-
pointed in different ways, sometimes by the king or
the lord proprietary, or, as in Massachusetts, by the
outgoing legislature, or, as in Connecticut, they were
elected by the people.
162 THE STATE.
Thus all the colonies had a goyemment framed
after the model to which the people had been accus-
The colonial tomcd in England. It was like the English
muto^e system in miniature, the governor answering
SS to*iiS^ to the king, and the legislature, usually two-
^*^^- chambered, answering to parliament. And
as quarrels between king and parliament were not un-
conmion, so quarrels between governor and legislature
were very frequent indeed, except in Connecticut and
Rhode Island. The royal governors, representing
British imperial ideas rather than American ideas,
were sure to come into conflict with the popular assem-
blies, and sometimes became the objects of bitter
popular hatred. The disputes were apt to be con-
cerned with questions in which taxation was involved,
such as the salaries of crown officers, the appropri-
ations for war with the Indians, and so on. Such
disputes bred more or less popular discontent, but
the strue&rle did not become fla&rant so Ions: as the
British pLament refrained from^ddling 4th it.
The Americans never res^arded parliament as pos-
sessing any rightful authorl^ over'ti^eir intemaTaf-
fairs. When the earliest colonies were founded, it
TheAmer- ^as the general theory that the American
ISSitSSthe wilderness was part of the king's private
S^pSS^^ domain and not subject to the control of
"-*' parUament. This theory lived on in Amer-
ica, but died out in England. On the one hand the
Americans had their own legislatures, which stood to
them in the place of parliament. The authority of
parliament was derived from the fact that it was a
representative body, but it did not represent Amer-
icans. Accordingly the Americans held that, the re-
lation of each American colony to Great Britain was
like the relation between England and Scotland in
THE COLONIAL GOVERNMENTS. 163
the seventeenth century. England and Scotland then
had the same king, but separate parliaments, and the
English parliament could not make laws for Scotland.
Such is Uie connection between Sweden and Norway
at the present day ; they have the same king, but
each country legislates for itself. So the American
colonists held that Virginia, for example, and Great
Britain had the same king, but each its independent
legislature ; and so with the other colonies, — there
were thirteen parliaments in America, each as sover-
eign within its own sphere as the parUament at West-
minster, and the latter had no more right to tax the
people of Massachusetts than the Massachusetts legis-
lature had to tax the people of Virginia.
In one respect, however, the Americans did admit
that parliament had a general right of supervision
over all parts of the British empire. Mari- except in the
time commerce seemed to be as much the S2^e°^'
affair of one part of the empire as another, «o°^«"«-
and it seemed right that it should be regulated by the
central parliament at Westminster. Accordingly the
Americans did not resist custom-house taxes as long
as they seemed to be imposed for purely commercial
purposes ; but they were quick to resist direct taxa-
tion, and custom-house taxes likewise, as soon as these
began to form a part of schemes for extending the
authoriiy of parliament over the colonies.
In England, on the other hand, this theory that the
Americans were subject to the king's au-
thority but not to that of parliament natu- there grew
11 1 • n« •! 1 ii 1 1 • upthethe-
rally became unmtelugible after the king oryof the
himself had become virtually subiect to par- premacy of
rm o • . 11 1 parliaBMnt.
liament. The Stuart kings might call them-
selves kings by the grace of God, but since 1688 the sov-
ereigns of Great Britain owe their seat upon the throne
164 THE STATE.
to an act of parliament. To suppose that the king's
American subjects were not amenable to the authority
of parliament seemed like supposing that a stream
could rise higher than its source. Besides, after 1700
the British empire began to expand in all parts of the
world, and the business of parliament became more
and more imperial. It could make laws for the East
India Company ; why not, then, for the Company of
Massachusetts Bay ?
Thus the American theory of the situation was
irreconcilable with the British theory, and when par-
liament in 1765, with no unfriendly purpose, began
laying taxes upon the Americans, thus invading the
province of the colonial legislatures, the Americans
refused to submit. The ensuing quarrel might doubt-
conflictbe- less havc bccu peacefully adjusted, had not
£i«Sh*^d *h® king, George III., happened to be enter-
iSL^h^ taining political schemes which were threat-
djdtlJ^^ ened with ruin if the Americans should get
George m. ^ fg^jj, hearing for their side of the oase.^
Thus political intrigue came in to make the situation
hopeless. When a state of things arises, with which
men's estabHshed methods of civil government are in-
competent to deal, men fall back upon the primitive
method which was in vogue before civil government
began to exist. They fight it out ; and so we had our
Revolutionary War, and became separated politically
from Great Britain. It is worthy of note, in this
connection, that the last act of parliament, which
brought matters to a crisis, was the so-caUed Regulat-
ing Act of April, 1774, the purpose of which was to
change the government of Massachusetts. This act
provided that members of the council should be ap-
^ See my War of Independence, pp. 58-64, 69-71 (Riyeraide
Library for Young People) .
THE COLONIAL GOVERNMENTS, 165
pointed by the royal governor, that they should be paid
by the crown and thus be kept subservient to it,
that the principal executive and judicial officers should
be likewise paid by the crown, and that town-meetings
should be prohibited except for the sole purpose of
electing town officers. Other iinwarrantable acts were
passed at the same time, but this was the worst.
Troops were sent over to aid in enforcing this act, the
people of Massachusetts refused to recognize its valid-
ity, and out of this political situation came the battles
of Lexington and Banker HilL
QUESTIONS OX THE TEXT.
1. Yarioiu claims to North America : —
a. Spanish.
b. English.
c. French.
2. What was needed to make such claims of any value ?
3. The London and Plymouth companies : —
a. The time and purpose of their organization.
b. The grant to the London Company.
c. The grant to the Plymouth Company.
d. The magnitude of the zones granted.
e. The peculiar provisions for the intermediate zone,
y. First attempts at settlement.
4. To what important principle of the common charter of these
two companies did the colonists persistently cling ?
5. The influence of these short-lived companies upon the settle-
ment and government of the United States : —
a. A review of the zones and their assignment.
b. The states of the northern zone and their origin.
c. The states of the southern zone and their origin.
d. The states of the middle zone and their origin. '
6. The influence of the movement of population on local
government in each zone.
6. Early state government in Virginia : —
a. The part appointed and the part elected.
6. The first legislative body in America,
c. The dignity of its members.
166 THE STATE.
d. The reason for the name <* House of Burgesses."
7. Early state govemment in Massachusetts : —
a. The Dorchester Company.
h. The government provided for the Company of Massachn-
setts Bay by its charter.
c. The real purpose of the Puritan leadera
d. The change from the primary assembly of freemen to the
representative assembly.
6. The division of this assembly into two houses, with a com-
parison of the houses.
f. The reason for the name '* Greueral Court."
g. The loss of the charter and the causes that led to it.
h. The new charter as compared with the old.
8. Compare the early governments of Connecticut and Rhode
Island with the first govemment of Massachusetts.
9. What two kinds of state govemment have thus far been
observed ?
10. Early state govemment in Maryland : —
a. The favouritism of the crown as shown in land grants.
h. The palatine counties of England.
c. The bbhopric of Durham the model of the colony of
Maryland.
d. The extraordinary privileges granted Lord Baltimore.
6. The tribute to be paid in return.
f. The ruler a feudal king.
g. Limitations of the ruler's power.
11. Early state govemment in Pennsylvania and Delaware : —
a. The powers of Peun as compared with those of Calvert.
b. One governor and council.
c. The legislature of each colony.
d. The quarrels of the Penns and Calverts.
e. Mason and Dixon's line.
12. What other proprietary governments were organized, and
what was their fate ?
13. Why were proprietary governments unpopular ? (Note the
exceptions, however.)
14. Classify and define the forms of colonial govemment in ex-
istence at the beginning of the Revolution.
1 5. Show that these forms differed chiefly in respect to the gov-
ernor's office.
16. A representative assembly in each of the thirteen colo-
nies : —
THE TRANSITION. 167
a. The basis of representation.
b. The control of the public money.
c. The spontaneousness of the representative assembly.
17. The governor's council : —
a. The custom in £ngland.
h. The council as an upper house.
c. The council in Pennsylvania.
18. Compare the colonial systems with the British (1) in organ-
ization and (2) in the nature of their political quarrels.
19. What was the American theory of the relation of each col-
ony to the British parliament ?
20. What was the American attitude towards maritime regula-
tions?
21. What was the British theory of the relation of the Ameri-
can colonies to parliament ?
22. How was the Revolutionary War brought on ?
23. Describe the last act of parliament that brought matters to a
crisis.
§ 2. ITie Transition from Colonial to State Gov-
ernments.
During the earlier part of the Eevolutionary War
most of the states had some kind of provisional gov-
ernment. The case of Massachusetts may serve as an
illustration. There, as in the other colonies, the gov-
ernor had the power of dissolving the assem- Diggoiution
bly. This was like the king's power of dis- SLSTSS'
solving parliament in the days of the Stuarts. p»^i*»°^*^
It was then a dangerous power. In modern England
there is nothing dangerous in a dissolution of parlia-
ment ; on the contrary, it is a useful device for ascer-
taining the wishes of the people, for a new House of
Commons must be elected immediately. But in old
times the king would turn his parliament out of doors,
and as long as he could beg, borrow, or steal enough
money to carry on government according to his own
notions, he would not order a new election. Fortu-
nately such periods were not very long. The latest
168 THE STATE.
instance was in the reign of Charles L, who got on
without a parliament from 1629 to 1640.^ In the
American colonies the dissolution of the assembly by
the governor was not especially dangerous, but it
sometimes made mischief by delaying needed legisla-
tion. During the few years preceding the Revolu-
tion, the assemblies were so often dissolved that it
became necessary for the people to devise some new
way of getting their representatives together to act
for the colony. In Massachusetts this end was at-
tained by the famous ^^ Conunittees of Correspondence."
No one could deny that town-meetings were
of corre- legal, or that the people of one township
'^ ^^ had a right to ask advice from the people of
another township. Accordingly each township ap*
pointed a committee to correspond or confer with
committees from other townships. This system was
put into operation by Samuel Adams in 1772, and for
the next two years the popular resistance to the crown
was organized by these committees. For example,
before the tea was thrown into Boston harbour, the
Boston committee sought and received advice from
every township in Massachusetts, and the treatment
of the tea-ships was from first to last directed by the
committees of Boston and five neighbour towns.
In 1774 a further step was taken. As parliament
had overthrown the old government, and sent over
General Gage as military governor, to put its new sys-
tem into operation, the people defied and ignored
Gage, and the townships elected delegates to meet
^ The kings of France contrived to get along without a rep-
resentative assembly from 1614 to 1789, and during this long
period abuses so multiplied that the meeting of the States-Gen-
eral in 1789 precipitated the great revolution which overthrew
the monarchy.
THE TRANSITION. 169
together in what was called a ^^ Provincial Congress/*
The president of this congress was the chief promoui
executive officer of the commonwealth, and ^<»«'«^
there was a small executive council, known as the
" Committee of Safety."
This provisional government lasted about a year. In
the summer of 1775 the people went further. They
fell back upon their charter and proceeded to carry on
their government as it had been carried on before
1774, except that the governor was left out altogether.
The people in town-meeting elected their representa-
tives to a general assembly, as of old, and this assembly
chose a council of twenty-eight members to sit as an
upper house. The president of the councit was the fore-
most executive officer of the commonwealth, but he had
not the powers of a governor. He was no more the
governor than the president of our federal senate is
the president of the United States. The powers of the
governor were reaUy vested in the council, which was
an executive as well as a legislative body, and the
president was its chairman. Indeed, the title . .
* , , , , , Proiisioiial
" president " is simply the Latin for " chair- gorem-
■*• • ments;
man," he who " presides " or " sits before" "govem-
■*• , ore ** and
an assembly. In 1775 it was a more mod- "pred-
est title than "governor," and had not the
smack of semi-royalty which lingered about the lat-
ter. Governors had made so much trouble that people
were distrustful of the office, and at first it was
thought that the council would be quite sufficient for
the executive work that was to be done. Several of
the states thus organized their governments with a
council at the head instead of a governor ; and hence
m reading about that period one often comes across
the title "president," somewhat loosely used as if
equivalent to governor. Thus in 1787 we find Benja-
170 THE STATE,
min Franklin called "president of Pennsylvania,"
meaning " president of the council of Pennsylvania.'^
But this arrangement did not prove satisfactory and
did not last long. It soon appeared that for executive
work one man is better than a group of men. In
Massachusetts, in 1780, the old charter was replaced
by a new written constitution, under which was formed
the state government which, with some emendations in
detail, has continued to the present day. Before the
end of the eighteenth century all the states except
Connecticut and Rhode Island, which had always
been practically independent, thus remodelled their
governments.
These chatiges, however, were very conservative.
The old form of government was closely followed.
First there was the governor, elected in some states
by the legislature, in others by the people. Then
there was the two-chambered legislature, of which the
lower house was the same institution after the Revolu-
originof *^^^ *^^* ^* ^^^ been before. The upper
the Senates. Jiq^sc, or couucil, was retained, but in a
somewhat altered form. The Americans had been
used to having the acts of their popular assemblies
reviewed by a council, and so they retained this revi-
sory body as an upper house. But the fashion of
copying names and titles from the ancient Boman re-
public was then prevalent, and accordingly the upper
house was called a Senate. There was a higher prop-
erly qualification for senators than for representatives,
and generally their terms of service were longer. In
some states they were chosen by the people, in others by
the lower house. In Maryland they were chosen by
a special college of electors, an arrangement which
was copied in our federal government in the election
of the president of the United States. In most of the
THE TRANSITION, 171
states there was a lieutenant-governor, as there had
been in the colonial period, to serve in case of the
governor's death or incapacity ; ordinarily the lieuten-
ant-governor presided over the senate.
Thus our state governments came to be repetitions
on a small scale of the king, lords, and commons of
England. The governor answered to the king, ^th
his digniiy very much curtailed by election for a short
period. The senate answered to the House of Lords
except in being a representative and not a hereditary
body. It was supposed to represent more especially
that part of the community which was possessed of
most wealth and consideration ; and in several states
the senators were apportioned with some reference to
the amount of taxes paid by different parts of the
state.^ When New York made its senate a supreme
court of appeal, it was in deliberate imitation of the
House of Lfords. On the other hand, the House of
Representatives answered to the House of Conunons
as it used to be in the days when its power was really
limited by that of the upper house and the
kins:. At the present day the Ens^lish anddnfer-
House of Commons is a supreme body. In tween Brit-
case of a serious difference with the House American
of Lords, the upper house must yield, or
else new peers will be created in sufficient number to
reverse its vote ; and the lords always yield before this
point is reached. So, too, though the veto power of
the sovereign has never been explicitly abolished, it
has not been exercised since 1707, and would not now
be tolerated for a moment. In America there is no
such supreme body. The bill passed by the lower
house may be thrown out by the upper house, or if it
passes both it may be vetoed by the governor ; and
1 See my Critical Period of American History, p. 68.
172 ^ THE STATE.
unless the bill can again pass both houses by more
than a simple majority, the veto will stand. In most
of the states a two-thirds vote in the affirmative is
required.
QUESTIONS ox TH£ TEXT.
1. The dissolution of assemblies and parliaments : —
a. The governor's power over the assembly in the colonies.
6. The king's power over parliament in England.
c. The danger of dissolution in the time of the Stuarts.
</. The safety of dissolution in modem England.
e. The frequency of dissolution before the Revolution.
2. Representation of the people in the provisional government
of Massachusetts : —
a. The committees of correspondence.
b» Their function, with an illustration from the '' tea-ships."
c. The provincial congress.
d. The conmiittee of safety.
e. The return to the two-chambered legislature of the char-
ter.
3. Executive powers in the provisional government of Massachu-
setts ; —
a. The foremost executive officer.
h. Where the power of governor was really vested.
c. Why the name of president was preferred to that of gov-
ernor.
d. The example of Massachusetts followed elsewhere.
e. The end of provisional government iu 1780.
4. The council transformed to a senate : —
a. The principle of reviewing the acts of the popular as-
sembly.
h. The borrowing of Roman names.
c. The qualifications and service of senators.
d. The lieutenant-governor.
5. Our state governments patterned after the government of
England : —
a. The governor and the king.
h. The Senate and the House of Lords.
c. The House of Representatives and the House of Conmiona
d. Some differences between the British system and the
N American.
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS. 178
§ 3. ITie State Governments.
During the last century our state governments
underwent more or less revision, chiefly in the way of
abolishing property qualifications for office, making
the suffrage universal, and electing officers that were
formerly appointed. [In Delaware a property qualifi-
cation for senators was retained until 1897.] There is
no longer any distinction in principle between j^, ^^
the upper and lower houses of the legislature. *«***<»^
Both represent population, the usual difference being
that the senate consists of fewer members who repre-
sent larger districts. Usually, too, the term of the
representatives is two years, and the whole house is
elected at the same time, while the term of senators is
four years, and half the number are elected every two
years. This system of two-chambered legislatures is
probably retained chiefly through a spirit of conserva-
tism, because it is what we are used to. But it no
doubt has real advantages in checking hasty legislation.
People are always wanting to have laws made about
all sorts of things, and in nine cases out of ten their
laws would be pernicious laws ; so that it is well not
to have legislation made too easy.
The suffrage by which the legislature is elected is
almost universal. It is given in most states to all
male citizens who have reached the age of one-and-
twenty. In some (13) it is given also to denizens of
foreign birth who have declared an intention of becom-
ing citizens. In some it is given without further
specification to every male inhabitant of voting age.
Besidence in the state for some period, vary- ^he suf-
ing from three months to two years and a *'^^*
half, is also generally required ; sometimes a certain
length of residence in the county, the town, or even in
174 THE STATE,
the voting precinct, is prescribed. In many of the
states it is necessary to have paid one's poll-tax.
There is no longer any property qualification, though
there was until recently in Bhode Island. Criminals,
idiots, and lunatics are excluded from the suffrage.
Some states also exclude duellists and men who bet on
elections. Connecticut and Massachusetts shut out per-
sons who are unable to read.^ In no other country has
access to citizenship and the suffrage been made so easy.
The suffrage has generally been restricted to men.
Perhaps the historical reason for this is to be sought
in the historical conditions under which voting origi-
nated. In primeval times voting was probably adopted
as a substitute for fighting. The smaller and presuma-
bly weaker party yielded to the larger without an
actual trial of physical strength ; heads were counted
instead of being broken. Accordingly it was only the
warriors who became voters. The restriction of politi-
cal activity to men has also probably been emphasized
by the fact that all the higher civilizations have passed
through a well-defined patriarchal stage of society in
which each household was represented by its oldest
warriors. From present indications, it would seem
that under the conditions of modern industrial society,
the arrangements that have so long subsisted are likely
to be very essentially altered.
[At present, women have the same suffrage rights as
men in four states, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, and Wyo-
ming. In Kansas, they vote in all municipal elections,
and sometimes hold municipal office, even that of mayor.
^ [This is also true of Maine, California, Wyoming, and Dela-
ware ; and there is a recent tendency in some of the Soathem
states to insist upon either an educational or an altemative prop-
erty qualification. This does not apply, however, to those whose
ancestors voted before 1867.]
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS. 175
They have the school suffrage in twenty-three states
at present (1903), although two or three states qualify
the right by granting it to widows only or to tax-pay-
ing women only. The women of Great Britain and
Ireland have large voting privileges, and the new Aus-
tralian federation has given women full federal suffrage
rights. They vote in local elections in several of the
Australian states. The movement in favor of woman
suffrage shows at present a tendency toward rapid
increase in strength and scope.]
A peculiar feature of American governments, and
something which it is hard for Europeans to «
^ , *• , Separation
understand, is the almost complete separation between lee-
between the executive and the 'le&:islative theexecu-
departaneuts. In European conntries the ""•
great executive officers are either members of the^
legislature, or at all events have the right to be present
at its meetings and take part in its discussions ; and
as they generaUy have some definite policy by which .
they are to stand or fall, they are wont to initiate legis-
lation and to guide the course of the discussion. But
in America the legislatures, having no such central
points about which to rally their forces, carry on their
work in an aimless, rambling sort of way, through the
agency of many standing committees. When a mea-
sure is proposed it is referred to one of the committees
for examination before the house will have anything
to do with it. Such a preliminary examination is of
course necessary where there is a vast amount of legis-
lative work going on. But the private and discon-
nected way in which our committee work is done tends
to prevent full and instructive discussion in the house,
to make the mass of legislation, always chaotic enough,
somewhat more chaotic, and to facilitate the various
evil devices of lobbying and log-rolling.
176 THE STATE.
In pointing out this inconvenience attendant upon
the American plan of separating the executive and
legislative departments, I must not be understood as
advocating the European plan as preferable for this
country. The evils that inevitably flow from any
fundamental change in the institutions of a country
are apt to be much more serious than the evils which
the change is intended to remove. Political govern-
ment is like a plant ; a little watering and pruning do
very well for it, but the less its roots are fooled with,
the better. In the American system of government
the independence of the executive department, with
reference to the legislative, is fundamental ; and on
the whole it is eminently desirable. One of the most
serious of the dangers which beset democratic govern-
*ment, especially where it is conducted on a great scale,
is the danger that the majority for the time being will
use its power tyrannically and unscrupulously, as it is
: always tempted to do. Against such unbridled democ-
racy we have striven to guard ourselves by various
constitutional checks and balances. Our written con-
stitutions and our Supreme Court are important safe-
guards, as will be shown below. The independence
of our executives is another important safeguard.
But if our executive departments were mere com-
mittees of the legislature — like the English cabinet,
for example — this independence could not possibly
be maintained ; and the loss of it would doubtless
entail upon us evils far greater than those which
now flow from want of leadership in our legislatures.^
^ In two admirable essays on ^^ Cabinet Responsibility and the
Constitution," and "Democracy and the Constitution," Mr.
Lawrence Lowell has convincingly argned that the American
system is best adapted to the circumstances of this country.
Lo welly Essays on Oovemmenty pp. 20-117, Boston, 1890.
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS. 177
We muBt remember that goyernment is necessarily a
cumbrous affair, however conducted.
The only occasion on which the governor is a part
of the legislature is when he signs or vetoes a bill.
Then he is virtually in himself a third house, xhe state
As an executive officer the governor is far ^•c^**^-
less powerful than in the colonial times. We shall
see the reason of this after we have enumerated some
of the principal offices in the executive department.
There is always a secretary of state, whose main duly
is to make and keep the records of state transactions.
There is always a state treasurer, and usually a state
auditor or comptroller to examine the public accounts
and issue the warrants without which the treasurer
cannot pay out a penny of the state's money. There
is almost always an attorney-general, to appear for
the state in the supreme court in all cases in which
the state is a party, and in all prosecutions for capital
offences. He also exercises some superintendence
over the district attorneys, and acts as legal adviser
to the governors and the legislature. There is also in
many states a superintendent of education; and in
some there are boards of education, of health, of
lunacy and charity, bureaux of agriculture, commis-
sioners of prisons, of railroads, of mines, of harbours,
of immigration, and so on. Sometimes such boards
are appointed by the governor, but such officers as
the secretary of state, the treasurer, auditor, and at-
torney-general are, in almost all the states, elected by
the people. They are not responsible to the governor,
but to the people who elect them. They are not sub-
ordinate to the governor, but are rather his colleagues.
Strictly speakmg, the governor is not the head of the
executive department, but a member of it. The exec-
titive department is parcelled out in several pieces^
and his is one of the pieces.
178 THE STATE.
The ordinary functions of the governor are four in
number. 1. He sends a message to the legislature,
The gov- ** *^® beginning of each session, recommend-
S^'-V^ ing such measures as he would like to see
J^[^^*|- embodied in legislation. 2. He is com-
S?S^^^' mander-in-chief of the state militia, and as
"^*^ such can assist the sheriff of a county in
putting down a riot, or the President of the United
States, in the event of a war. On such occasions the
governor may become a personage of immense impor-
tance, as, for example, in our Civil War, when Pres-
ident Lincoln's demands for troops met with such
prompt response from the men who will be known to
history as the great " war governors." 8. The gov-
8. Royal pre- ^^^^^ ^^ iuvcstcd with the royal prerogative
SSotT*^' of pardoning criminals, or commuting the
sentences pronounced upon them by the
courts. This power belongs to kings in accordance
with the old feudal notion that the king was the
source or fountain of justice. When properly used
it affords an opportunity for rectifying some injustice
for which the ordinary machinery of the law could
not provide, or for making such allowances for extraor-
dinary circumstances as the court could not properly
consider. In our country it is too often improperly
used to enable the worst criminals to escape due
punishment, just because it is a disagreeable duty to
hang them. Such misplaced clemency is pleasant for
the murderers, but it makes life less secure for honest
men and women, and in the less civilized regions of
our country it encourages lynch law. 4. In all the
states except Bhode Island, Ohio, and North Carolina,
the governor has a veto upon the acts of the legisla-
ture, as above explained ; and in ordinary times this
power, which is not executive but legislative, is prob*
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS. 179
ably the governor's most important and considerable
power. In many of the states the governor can veto
particular items in a bill for the appropriation of pub-
lic money, while at the same time he ap- 4 y^^
proves the rest of the bill. This is a most ^^^^'
important safeguard against corruption, because where
the governor does not have this power it is possible to
make appropriations for unworthy or scandalous pur-
poses along with appropriations for matters of absolute
necessity, and then to lump them all together in the
same bill, so that the governor must either accept the
bad along with the good or reject the good along with
the bad. It is a great gain when the governor can
select the items and veto some while approving others.
In such matters the governor is often more honest and
discreet than the legislature, if for no other reason,
because he is one man, and responsibility can be fixed
upon him more clearly than upon two or three hun-
dred.
Such, in brief outline, is the framework of the
American state governments. But our account would
be very incomplete without some mention of two points?
both of them especially characteristic of the American
state, and likely to be overlooked or misunderstood by
Europeans.
Firsts while we have rapidly built up one of the
greatest empires yet seen upon the earth, we have left
our self-government substantially unimpaired
in the process. This is exemplified in the re- the state,
, , _ the local
lationship of the state to its towns and coun- aeif-govem-
xuent was
ties, and in its relationship to the federal leftunim-
•^v 1 T • 1 paired.
government. Over the township and county
governments the state exercises a general supervision ;
indeed, it* clothes tliem with their authority. Town-
ships and counties h^'Ve no sovereignty ; the state, on
180 THE STATE.
the other hand, has many elements of sovereignty, but
it does not use them to obliterate or unduly restrict the
control of the townships and counties over their own
administrative work. It leaves the local governments
to administer themselves. As a rule there is only just
enough state supervision to harmonize the working of
so many local administrations. Such a system of gov-
ernment comes as near as possible toward making all
American citizens participate actively in the manage-
ment of public affairs. It generates and nourishes a
public spirit and a universal acquaintance with matters
of public interest such as has probably never before
been seen in any great country. Public spirit of equal
or greater intensity may have been witnessed in small
and highly educated communities, such as ancient
Athens or mediaeval Florence, but in the United States
it is diffused over an area equal to the whole of Europe.
Among the leading countries of the world England is
the one which comes nearest to the United States in the
general diffusion of enlightened public spirit and politi-
cal capacity throughout all classes of society.
A very notable contrast to the self-government which
has produced such admirable results is to be seen in
France, and as contrasts are often instructive, let me
mention one or two features of the French government.
There is nothing like the irregularity and spontaneity
there that we have observed in our survey of the
United States. Everything is symmetrical. France
Instructive is divided into eighty-nine departments^ most
Sdth of them larger than the state of Delaware,
some of them nearly as large as Connecticut,
and the administration of one department is exactly
like that of all the others. The chief officer of the de-
partment is the prefect, who is appointed by the minister
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS, 181
of the interior at Paris. The prefect is treasurer, re-
cruiting officer, school superintendent, all in one, and
he appoints nearly aU inferior officers. The department
has a council, elected by universal suffrage, but it has
no power of assessing taxes. The central legislature in
Paris decides for it how much money it shall use and
how it shall raise it* The department council is not
even allowed to express its views on political matters ;
it can only attend to purely local details of adminis-
tration.
The smallest civU division in France is the com^
mune^ which may be either rural or urban. The
commime has a municipal council which elects a
mayor ; but when once elected the mayor becomes di-
rectly responsible to the prefect of the department,
and through him to the minister of the interior. If
these greater officers do not like what the mayor does,
they can overrule his acts or even suspend him from
office ; or upon their complaint the President of the
Republic can remove him.
Thus in France people do not manage their own
affairs, but they are managed for them by a hierarchy
of officials with its head at Paris. This sys-
tem was devised by the Constituent Assembly whether itis
. wprrvA 1 t . • . 1 1 nominally a
m lIv\) and wrought into completeness by despotic em-
Napoleon in 1800. The men who devised it puwicatthe
in 1790 actually supposed that they were in- scarcely any
augurating a system of political freedom (!), ment at the
and unquestionably it was a vast improve- Hence gor-
ment upon the wretched system which it there rests
supplanted ; but as contrasted with Amer- cure foun-
lean methods and institutions, it is difficult ^
to call it anything else than a highly centralized des-
potism. It has gone on without essential change
through all the revolutions which have overtaken
182 THE STATE.
France since 1800. The people have from time to
time overthrown an unpopular government at Paris,
but they have never assumed the direct control of
their own affairs.
Hence it is commonly remarked that while the
general intelligence of the French people is very
high, their intelligence in political matters is, com-
paratively speaking, very low. Some persons try to
explain this by a reference to peculiarities of race.
But if we Americans were to set about giving to the
state governments things to do that had better be
done by counties and towns, and giving the federal
government things to do that had better be done by
the states, it would not take many generations to
dull the keen edge of our political capacity. We
should lose it as inevitably as the most consum-
mate of pianists will lose his facility if he stops prac-
tising. It is therefore a fact of cardinal importance
that in the United States the local governments of
township, county, and city are left to administer them-
selves instead of being administered by a great bureau
with its head at the state capital. In a political society
thus constituted from the beginning it has proved pos-
sible to build up our Federal Union, in which the
states, while for certain purposes indissolubly united,
at the same time for many other purposes retain their
self-government intact. As in the case of other aggre-
gates, the nature of the American political aggregate
has been determined by the nature of its political
units.
Next^ let us observe how great are the functions
retained by our states under the conditions of our
Federal Union. The powers granted to our fed-
eral government, such as the control over interna-
tional questions, war and peace, the military forces.
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS. 188
the coinage, patents and copyrights, and the regula-
tion of commerce between the states and with „ _
YUtll0flB of
foreign countries, — all these are powers re- w^e f uno-
lating to matters that affect all the states, tainedby
® , the states in
but could not be regulated harmoniously by the Amer.
the separate action of the states. In order
the more completely to debar the states from meddling
with such matters, they are expressly prohibited from
entering into agreements with each other or with a
foreign power; they cannot engage in war, save in
case of actual invasion or such imminent danger as
admits of no delay ; without consent of Congress they
cannot keep a military or naval force in time of peace,
or impose custom-house duties. Besides all this they
are prohibited from granting titles of nobility, coining
money, emitting bills of credit, making anything but
gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts,
passing bills of attainder, ex post facto laws, or laws
impairing the obligation of contracts. The force of
these latter restrictions will be explained hereafter.
Such are the limitations of sovereignty imposed upon
the states within the Federal Union.
" Compared with the vast prerogatives of the state
legislatures, these limitations seem small enough. All
the civil and religious rights of our citizens depend
upon state legislation ; the education of the people is
in the care of the states ; with them rests the regula-
tion of the suffrage ; they prescribe the rules of mar-
riage, the legal relations of husband and wife, of par-
ent and child ; they determine the powers of masters
over servants and the whole law of principal and agent,
which is so vital a matter in all business transactions ;
they regulate partnership, debt and credit, insurance ;
they constitute all corporations, both private and mu-
nicipal, except such as specially fulfill the financial or
184 THE STATE.
other specific functions of the federal govermnent;
they control the possession, distribution, and use of
property, the exercise of trades, and all contract relar
tions ; and they formulate and administer all criminal
law, except only that which concerns crimes com-
mitted against the United States, on the high seas,
or against the law of nations. Space would fail in
which to enumerate the particulars of this vast range
of power ; to detail its parts would be to catalogue all
social and business relationships, to examine all the
foundations of law and order." ^
This enumeration, by Mr. Woodrow Wikon, is so
much to the point that I content myself with transcrib-
luustration "^S ^*' ^ ^®^ remarkable illustration of
E^SiS^wi. *^ preponderant part played by state law
^^' in America is given by Mr. Wilson, in pur-
suance of the suggestion of Mr. Franklin Jameson.^
Consider the most important subjects of legislation in
England during the present century, the subjects
which make up almost the entire constitutional history
of England for eighty years. These subjects are
"Catholic emancipation, parliamentary reform, the
abolition of slavery, the amendment of the poor-laws,
the reform of municipal corporations, the repeal of
the com laws, the admission of Jews to parliament,
the disestablishment of the Irish church, the altera-
tion of the Irish land laws, the establishment of na-
tional education, the introduction of the ballot, and
the reform of the criminal law." In the United States
only two of these twelve great subjects could be dealt
with by the federal government: the repeal of the
1 Woodrow Wilson, The State: Elements of Historical and
Practical Politics, p. 437.
^ Jameson, << The Study of the Constitutional and Political
History of the States," J, H. U. Studies y IV., v.
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS, 185
oom-laws, as being a question of national revenue and
custom-house duties, and the abolition of slavery, by
virtue of a constitutional aftiendment embodying some
of the results of our Civil War. All the other ques-
tions enumerated would have to be dealt with by our
state governments ; and before the war that was the
case with the slavery question also. A more vivid
illustration could not be asked for.
How complete is the circle of points in which the
state touches the life of the American citizen, we may
see in the fact that our state courts make a
complete judiciary system, from top to bot- enoe of the
tom independent of the federal courts. An
appeal may be carried from a state court to a federal
court in cases which are found to involve points of
federal law, or in suits arising between citizens of dif-
ferent states, or where foreign ambassadors are con-
cerned. Except for such cases the state courts make
up a complete judiciary world of their own, quite out-
side the sphere of the United States courts.
We have already had something to say about courts
in connection with those primitive areas for the ad-
ministration of justice, the hundred and the county.
In our states there are generally four grades of courts.
There are, first, the ^'t£8^tce« ofthepeace^ [trial justices
or other justices of like powers,] with jurisdiction over
" petty police offences and civil suits for trifling sums."
They also conduct preliminary hearings in cases where
persons are accused of serious crimes, and when the
evidence seems to warrant it they may commit the
accused person for trial before a higher court. The
mayor's court in a city usually has jurisdiction similar
to that of justices of the peace. Secondly, [in some
states] there are county and municipal courts^ which
hear appeals from justices of the peace and from
186 THE STATE.
mayor's courts, and have original jurisdiction over a
more important grade of civil and criminal cases.^
Thirdly, there al^ superior courts^ having
of the state Original jurisdiction over the most important
cases and over wider areas of country, so
that they do not confine their sessions to one place,
but move about from place to place, like the English
justices in eyre. Cases are carried up, on appeal, from
the lower to the superior court. Fourthly, there is in
every state a supreme courts [whose chief function is
to decide questions of law upon appeal or exceptions
from the lower court] In New York there is a "su-
premest " court, styled the court of appeals^ which has
the power of revising sundry judgments of the su-
preme court ; and there is something similar in New
Jersey, Illinois, Kentucky, and Louisiana.^
[While it is impracticable to enter upon a detailed
discussion of court procedure, the jury system and the
The jury selectiou of judgcs merit some attention. A
aystem. j^^y jg ^ \^^ of men sclccted when a ques-
tion of fact arises, to determine the truth from the
evidence that is presented before them. The ancient
custom by which our ancestors sought to settle their
disputes was later embodied in Magna Charta as the
right of every freeman to be tried by his peers. This
safeguard of personal liberty has at length crystallized
into a universal practice among English-speaking peo-
ples. The two juries known to the law are the grand
jury and the petit jury. The former consists of from
twelve to twenty-three men chosen by lot. When a
crime has been committed, it is their duty to inquire
^ [In other states, as in Massachusetts, such appeals are taken
to, and such orig^al jurisdiction is found in, what are hereinafter
termed the superior courts.]
« Wason, The State, pp. 609-513.
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS. 187
as to the cause thereof and to decide whether there
is sufficient probability' of guilt to warrant the trial
of the suspected person. If they are convinced that
there is, they prepare an indictment against him and
he is held to answer to the charge before the proper
court. The petit jury consists of twelve men, also
chosen by lot, to listen to the evidence in important
civil and criminal cases and to determine the guilt or
innocence of the person under trial. In nearly all
states, a unanimous decision of the jury is necessary
for conviction or acquittal ; in case of disagreement,
the accused may be held for a new trial. Any citi-
zen, except a professional man, is liable to be called
upon to serve on. a jury, although it is at times not
impossible for others to shirk what may be an incon-
venient and unpleasant duty. The difficulty of secur-
ing intelligent and unbiassed jurymen has led to a
good deal of dissatisfaction with the jury system, even
talk of its abolition ; but it would be difficult to find a
satisfactory substitute for the time-honored institution,
and the educational advantage to the average citizen
of thus participating in the administration of justice is
certainly very great] ^
In the thirteen colonies the judges were appointed
by the governor, with or without the consent of the
council, and they held office during life or good be-
haviour. Among the changes made in our state con-
stitutions since the Revolution, there have been few
more important than those which have affected the
position of the judges. In most of the states they are
now elected by the people for a term of years, some-
times as short as two years. There is a growing feel-
ing that this change was a mistake. It seems to have
lowered the general character of the judiciary. The
change was made by reasoning from analogy : it was
188 THE STATE.
supposed that in a free country all offices ought to
be elective and for short terms. But the
ftppointiTe case 01 a judge is not really analogous to
that of executive officers, like mayors and
governors and presidents. The history of popular
liberty is much older than the history of the United
States, and it would be difficult to point to an in-
stance in which popular liberty has ever suffered from
the life tenure of judges. On the contrary, the judge
ought to be as independent as possible of all transient
phases of popular sentiment, and American experience
during the past century seems to teach us that in the
few states where the appointing of judges during life
or good behaviour has prevailed, the administration
of justice has been better than in the states where the
judges have been elected for specified terms. Since
1869 there has been a marked tendency toward
lengthening the terms of elected judges, and in sev-
eral states there has been a return to the old method
of appointing judges by the governor, subject to con-
firmation by the senate.^ It is one of the excellent
features of our system of federal government, that the
several states can thus try experiments each for itself
and learn by comparison of results. When things are
all trimmed down to a dead level of uniformity by the
central power, as in France, a prolific source of valu-
able experiences is cut off and shut up.
Secondly^ a distinctive characteristic of the Ameri-
can state is the written constitution. This feature is
so remarkable and so important as to require a chap-
ter all to itself.
1 For details, see the admirable monograph of Henry Hitch-
cook, American State Constitutional p. 53.
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS. 189
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. Modifications of state goyemment during the last cen-
tury : —
a. Property qualifications for office.
b. The distinction between the upper and the lower house.
c. The advantage in retaining a two-chambered legislature.
2. The suffrage : —
a. The persons to whom it is granted.
b. The qualifications established.
c. The persons excluded from its exercise.
d. Historical reasons for the exclusion of women.
e. Present extent.
3. The separation of the executive and legislative depart-
ments : —
a. The relation of the great executive officers to legislation
in Europe.
b. The work of legislation in the United States.
c. The most serious of the dangers that beset democratic
government.
d. Important safeguards against such a danger.
4. The state executive : —
a. The governor as a part of the legislature.
b. Officers always belonging to executive departments.
c. Officers frequently belonging to executive departments.
d. The relation of the governor to other elected executive
officers.
5. The ordinary functions of the governor : —
a. Advising the legislature.
b. Commanding the militia.
c. Pardoning criminals or commuting their sentences.
d. Vetoing acts of the legislature.
6. Why is the power to veto particular items in a bill appro-
priating public money an important safeguard against
corruption ?
7. Local self-government in the United States left unim-
paired : —
a. The extent of state supervision of towns and counties.
h. The spirit thus developed in American citizens.
8. A lesson from the symmetry of the French government : —
a. The departments and their administration.
6. The prefect and his duties.
190 THE STATE,
c. The department council and its sphere of action.
d. The commune.
e. Tha French system contrasted with the American.
f. A common view of the political intelligence of the French.
g. The probable effect of excessive state control upon the
political intelligence of Americans.
9. The greatness of the functions retained by the states under
the federal government : —
a. Powers g^nted to the government of the United States.
h. llie reason for granting such powers.
c. The powers denied to the states.
d. Thie reason for such prohibitions.
e. The vast range of powers exercised by the states.
f. The most important subjects of legislation in England for
the past eighty years.
g. The governments, state or national, to which these twelve
subjects would have fallen in the United States.
10. Speak of the independence of the state courts.
1 1. In what cases only may matters be transferred from them to
a federal court ?
1 2. The constitution of the state courts : —
a. Justices of the peace ; the mayor's court.
5. County and municipal courts.
c. The superior courts.
d. The supreme court.
e. Still higher courts in certain states.
13. The jury system,
a. The grand jury.
h. The petit jury.
c. Advantages and disadvantages of the jury system.
14. The selection of judges and their terms of service : —
a. In the thirteen colonies.
h. In most of the states since the Revolution.
c. The reasons for a life tenure.
d. The tendency siuce 1869.
1 5. Mention a conspicuous advantage of our system of govern-
ment over the French.
SUOGESTIYE QUESTIONS AND DIRECTIONS.
I . Was there ever a charter government in your state ? If so,
where is the charter at the present time ? What is its
present value ? Try to see it, if possible. (Pupils of
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS. 191
Boston and vicinity, for example, may examine in the
ofiBce of the secretary of state, at the State House, the
charter of King Charles (1629) and that of William and
Mary (1692).
2. When was your state organized under its present govern-
ment? If it is not one of the original thirteen, what
was its history previous to organization ; that is, who
owned it and controlled it, and how came it to become a
state?
3. What are the qualifications for voting in your state ?
4. What are the arguments in favour of an educational qualifi-
cation for voters (as, for example, the ability to read the
Constitution of the United States) ? What reasons
might be urged against such qualifications ?
5. Do women vote in your town ? If so, give some account of
the voting and of the success or popularity of the plan.
6. Who is the governor of your state ? What political party
supported him for the position? For what ability or
eminent service was he selected ?
7. Give illustrations of the governor's exercise of the four func-
tions of advising, vetoing, pardoning, and commanding
(consult the newspapers while the legislature is in session).
8. Mention some things done by the governor that are not in-
cluded in the enumeration of his functions in the text.
9. Visit, if practicable, the State House. Observe the various
ofiBces, and consider the general nature of the business
done there. Attend a session of the Senate or the House
of Representatives. Obtain some ** orders of the day.*'
10. If the legislature is in session, follow its proceedings in the
newspapers. What important measures are under dis-
cussion ? On what sort of questions are party lines
pretty sharply drawn ? On what sort of questions are
party distinctions ignored ?
11. Consult the book of general or public statutes, and report on
the following points : —
a. The magnitude of the volume.
b. Does it contain all the laws ? If not, what are omitted ?
c. Give some of the topics dq^lt with.
d. Where are the laws to be found that ])ave been made
since the printing of the volume ?
e. Are the originals of the laws in the volume? If not,
where are they and in what shape ?
192 THE STATE.
12. Is everybody expected to know all the laws?
13. Does ignorance of the law excuse one for violating it ?
14. Suppose people desire the legislature to pass some law, as,
for example, a law requiring towns and cities to provide
flags for school-houses, how is the attention of the legis-
lature secured? What are the various stages through
which the bill must pass before it can become a law?
Why should there be so many stages ?
15. Give illustratious of the exercise of federal government,
state government, and local government, in your own
town or city. Of which government do you observe the
most signs ? Of which do you observe the fewest signs ?
Of which government do the officers seem most sensitive
to local opinion ?
16. Are the sessions of the leg^lature in your state annual or
biennial ? What is the argument for each system ?
For answers to numbers 17, 18, 19, and 20, consult the public
statutes, a lawyer, or some intelligent business man. A fair
idea of the successive steps in the courts may be obtained from
a good unabridged dictionary by looking up the technical terms
employed in these questions.
1 7. What is the difference between a civil action and a criminal ?
a. In respect to the object to be gained in each ?
h. In respect to the party that is the plaintiff ?
c. In respect to the consequences to the defendant if the case
goes against him ?
18. Give an outline of the procedure in a minor criminal action
that is tried without a jury in a lower court. Consider
(1) the complaint, (2) the warrant, (3) the return, (4)
the recognizance, (5) the subpoena, (6) the arraignment,
(7) the plea, (8) the testimony, (9) the arguments, (10)
the judgment and sentence, and (11) the penalty and its
enforcement. What is an appeal? — This procedure
seems cumbrous, but it is founded in common sense.
What one of the foregoing steps, for example, would yon
omit ? Why ?
19. Give an outline of the procedure in a criminal action that is
tried with a jury in a higher court. The action is begun
in a lower court where the first five stages are the same
as in number 17. Then follow (6) the examination of
witnesses, (7) the binding over of the accnsed to appear
THE STATE GOVERNMENTS, 198
before the higher court for trial, (8) the sending of the
complaint and the proceedings thereon to the district or
county attorney, (9) the indictment, (10) the action of
the grand jury upon the indictment, (11) the challenging
of jurors before the trial, (12) the arraignment, (13) the
plea, (14) the testimony, (15) the arguments, (16) the
charge to the jury, (17) the verdict, and (18) the sen-
tence, with its penalty and the enforcement of it. What
are " exceptions ? " — Why should there be a jury in the
higher court when there is none in the lower ? What is
the objection to dispensing with any one of the foregoing
steps ? Does this machinery make it difficult to punish
crime ? Why should an accused person receive so much
consideration ?
20. Give an outline of* the procedure in a minor civil action.
Consider (1) the writ, (2) the attachment, (3) the sum-
mons to the defendant, (4) the return, (5) the pleading,
(6) the testimony, (7) the arguments, (8) the judgment
or decision of the judge, and (9) the execution. — If the
action is conducted in « higher court, then a jury decides
the question at issue, the judge instructing the jurors in
points of law.
21. Suppose an innocent man is tried for an alleged crime and
acquitted, has he any redress ?
22. Is the enforcement of law complete and satisfactory in your
community ?
23. What is your opinion of the general security of person and
property in your community ?
24. Is there any connection between public sentiment about a
law and the enforcement of that law ? If so, what is it ?
25. Any one of the twelve subjects of legislation cited on page
184 may be taken as a special topic. Consult any mod-
em history of England.
26. Which do you regard as the more important possession for
the citizen, — an acquaintance with the principles and
details of government and law, or a law-abiding and law-
supporting spirit ? What reasons have you for your opin-
ion ? Where is your sympathy in times of disorder, with
those who defy the law or with those who seek to enforce
it? (Suppose a case in which you do not approve the
law, and then answer.)
27. May you ever become an officer of the law ? Would you as
194 THE STATE.
a citizen be justified in withholding from an officer that
obedience and moral support which you as an officer
might justly demand from every citizen ?
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.
The State. — For the founding of the several colonies, their
charters, etc., the student may profitably consult the learned
monographs in Winsor*s Narrative and Critical History of
America, 8 vols., Boston, 1886-89. A popular account, quite
full in details, is given iu Lodge's Short History of the English
Colonies in America, N. Y., 1881. There* is a fairly good account
of the revision and transformation of the colonial governments
in Bancroft's History of the United States, final edition, N. Y.,
1886, vol. V. pp. 111-125.
The series of ** American Commonwealths,'' edited by H. E.
Scudder, and published by Houghton, Mifflin & Co., will be
found helpful. The following have been published : Johnston,
Connecticut : a Study of a Commonwealth Democracy, 1887 ;
Roberts, New York: the Planting and Growth of the Empire
State, 2 vols., 1887 ; Browne, Maryland : the History of a Palati-
nate, 2d ed., 1884 ; Cooke, Virginia : a History of the People,
1883; Sbaler, Kentucky: a Pioneer Commonwealth,, 188^ ; Eang,
Ohio: First Fruits of the Ordinance of 1787,1888 ; Dnnn, Indiana:
a Redemption from Slavery, 1888 ; Cooley, Michigan : a History of
Governments, 1885 ; Carr, Missouri: a Bone of Contention, 1888 ;
Spring, Kansas : the Prelude to the War for the Union, 1885 ;
Royce, California : a Study of American Character, 1886 ; Bar-
rows, Oregon: the Struggle for Possession, 1883 ; Robinson, Ver^
mont : a Study of Independence, 1892.
In connection with the questions on page 183, the student is
advised to consult Dole's Talks about Law : a Popular Statement
of What our Law is and How it is Administered, Boston, 1887.
This book deserves high praise. In a very easy and attractive
way it gives an account of such facts and principles of law as
ought to be familiarly understood by every man and woman.
CHAPTER VII.
WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS.
Toward the close of the preceding chapter I spoke
of two points especially characteristic of the American
state, and I went on to mention one of them, the pre-
servation of local self-government, both in the state
and in the smaller political divisions of town and
county. I now take up the second point. In the
American state the legislature is not supreme, i^ t;he
but has. limits to its authority prescribed by tSS^hSeiB
a written document, known as the Constitu- JiSJe the
tion ; and if the legislature happens to pass ^«*«ia*»^
a law which violates the constitution, then whenever
a specific case happens to arise in which this statute
is involved, it can be brought before the courts, and
the decision of the court, if adverse to the statute,
annuls it and renders it of no effect. The impor-
tance of this feature of civil government in the United
States can hardly be overrated. It marks a momentous
advance in civilization, and it is especially interesting
as being peculiarly American. Almost everything
else in our fundamental institutions was brought by
our forefathers in a more or less highly developed
condition from England ; but the development of the
written constitution, with the consequent relation of
the courts to the law-making power, has gone on en-
tirely upon American soil.
196 WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS.
The germs of the written constitution existed a
great while ago. Perhaps it would not be easy to say
just when they began to exist. It was formerly sup-
posed by such profoimd thinkers as Locke and such
Oermsofthe persuasive writers as Rousseau, that when
^Stten*con- *^® ^^^t mcu camc together to live in civil
Btitution. society, they made a sort of contract with
one another as to what laws they would have, what
beliefs they would entertain, what customs they would
sanction, and so forth. This theory of the Social
Contract was once famous, and exerted a notable in-
fluence on political history, and it is still interesting
in the same way that spinning-wheels and wooden
frigates and powdered Jgs Je interesting ; but we
now know tha? men lived in civU society, llth com-
plicated laws and customs and creeds, for many
thousand years before the notion had ever entered
anybody's head that things could be regulated by
contract. That notion we owe chiefly to the ancient
ourindebt- Romaus, and it took them several centuries
SS!t R^® to comprehend the idea and put it into prac-
°**°"' tice. We owe them a debt of gratitude for
it. The custom of regulating business and politics
and the affairs of life generally by voluntary but
binding agreements is something without which we
moderns would not think life worth living. It was
after the Roman world — that is to say, Christendom,
for in the Middle Ages the two terms were synony-
mous — had become thoroughly familiar with the
idea of contract, that the practice grew up of grant-
ing written charters to towns, or monasteries, or other
corporate bodies. The charter of a mediaeval town
was a kind of written contract by which the town ob-
tained certain specified immunities or privileges from
the sovereign or from a great feudal lord, in exchange
WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS. 197
for some specified service which often took the form
of a money payment. It was common enough for a
town to buy liberty for hard cash, just as a Medtorai
man mieht buy a farm. The word charter <*»'^*«*
origmally meJt simply a paper or written document,
and it was often applied to deeds for the transfer of
real estate. In contracts of such importance papers
or parchment documents were drawn up and carefully
preserved as irrefragable evidences of the transaction.
And so, in quite significant phrase the towns zealously
guarded their charters as the *' title-deeds of their
liberties."
After a while the word charter was applied in Eng-
land to a particular document which speci
. • The ** Gtftiit
fied certain important concessions forcibly charter**
wrung by the p^ple from a most unwUUng ^^>-
sovereign. This document was called Magna Charter
or the ** Great Charter," signed at Runnymede, June
16, 1215, by John, king of England. After the king
had signed it and gone away to his room, he rolled
in a mad fury on the floor, screaming curses, and
gnawing sticks and straw in the impotence of his
wrath.i Perhaps it would be straining words to call
a transaction in which the consent was so one-sided
a "contract," but the idea of Magna Charta was
derived from that of the town charters with which
people were already familiar. Thus a charter came
to mean ** a grant made by the sovereign either to the
whole people or to a portion of them, securing to
ihem the enjoyment of certain rights." Now in legal
usage " a charter differs from a constitution in this,
that the former is granted by the sovereign, while the
latter is established by the people themselves: both
are the fundamental law of the land." ^ The distinc-
* Green, Hist, of the English People^ vol. i. p. 248.
* Bouvier, Lata Dictionary^ 12th ed., vol. 1. ^. W^^
198 WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS.
tion is admirably expressed, but in history it is not
always easy to make it. Magna Charta was in form a
grant by the sovereign, but it was really drawn up by
the barons, who in a certain sense represented the
English people ; and established by the people after a
long struggle which was only in its first stages in
John's time. To some extent it partook of the nature
of a written constitution.
Let us now observe what happened early in 1689,
after James II. had fled from England. On January
28th parliament declared the thi'one vacant. Parlia-
ment then drew up the '^Declaration of Rights," a
document very similar in purport to the first eight
amendments to our Federal Constitution, and on the
13th of February the two houses offered the crown to
William and Mary on condition of their accepting
this declaration of the '^ true, ancient, and indubitable
rights of the people of this realm." The crovni hav-
ing been accepted on these terms, parUament in the
.4 Bill * followingDecemberenacted the famous "Bill
^mt* of Rights," which simply put their previous
declaration into the form of a declaratory
statute. The Bill of Rights was not — even in form
— a grant from a sovereign ; it was an instrument
framed by the representatives of the people, and with-
out promising to respect it William and Mary could
no more have mounted the throne than a president
of the United States could be inducted into office if
he were to refuse to take the prescribed oath -of alle-
giance to the Federal Constitution. The Bill of Rights
was therefore, strictly speaking, a piece of written con-
stitution ; it was a constitution as far as it went.
The seventeenth century, the age when the build-
ers of American commonwealths were coming from
England, was especially notable in England for two
WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS. 199
things. One was the rapid growth of modem com*
mercial occupations and habits, the other was the tem-
porary overthrow of monarchy, soonfoUowed by the
final subjection of the crown to parliament. Accord-
ingly the sphere of contract and the sphere of popular
sovereignty were enlarged in men's minds, and the
notion Slwritten constilnition first began to find ex-
pression. The " Instrument of Government " which
in 1653 created the protectorate of Oliver Cromwell
was substantially a written constitution, but it ema-
nated from a questionable auti.oriiy and was not rati-
fied. It was drawn up by a council of army officers ;
and ^^ it broke down because the first parliament sum-
moned under it refused to acknowledge its binding
force." ^ The dissolution of this parliament accord-
ingly left Oliver absolute dictator. In 1656, when
it seemed so necessary to decide what sort of poreahadow-
govemment the dictatorship of Cromwell J^h^
was to prepare the way for. Sir Harry Vane ^^^y^e
proposed that a national convention should ^^^
be called for drawing up a written constitution.^ The
way in which he stated his case showed that he had in
him a prophetic foreshadowing of the American idea
as it was realized in 1787. But Vane's ideas were
too far in advance of his age to be realized then in
England. Older ideas, to which men were more ac-
customed, determined the course of events there, and
it was left for Americans to create a government by
means of a written constitution. And when Amer-
^ Gardiner, Constitutional Documents of the Puritan Revolution^
p. Ix.
* See Hosmer's Young Sir Henry Vane, pp. 432-444, — one of
the best books ever written for the reader who wishes to under-
stand the state of mind among the English people in the crisis
when they laid the foundations of the United States.
200 WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS.
ican statesmen did so, they did it without any refer-
ence to Sir Harry Vane. His relation to the subject
has been discovered only in later days, but I mention
him here in illustration of the way in which great in-
stitutions grow. They take shape when they express
the opinions and wishes of a multitude of persons;
but it often happens that one or two men of remark-
able foresight had thought of them long beforehand.
In America the first attempts at written constitu-
tions, were, in the fullest sense made by, the people,
and not through representatives but directly. In the
Mayflower's cabin, before the Pilgrims had landed on
Plymouth rock, they subscribed their names to a com-
pact in which they agreed to constitute them-
flowercom- sclvcs into a " body politic," and to enact
such laws as might be deemed best for the
colony they were about to establish ; and they prom-
ised ^^ all due submission and obedience " to such
laws. Such a compact is of course too vague to be
called a constitution. Properly speaking, a written
constitution is a document which defines the character
and powers of the government to which its framers
are willing to entrust themselves. Almost any kind
of civil government might have been framed under
the Mayflower compact, but the document is none the
less interesting as an indication of the temper of the
men who subscribed their names to it.
The first written constitution known to history was
that by which the republic of Connecticut was organ-
ized in 1639. At first the affairs of the Connecticut
settlements had been directed by a commission ap-
pointed by the General Court of Massachusetts, but
on the 14th of January, 1639, all the freemen of the
three river towns — Windsor, Hartford, and Wethers-
field — assembled at Hartford, and drew up a written
WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS. 201
constitution, consisting of eleven articles, in which
the frame of government then and there -n^ .»«^
adopted was distinctly described. This docu- gjj^i??^
ment, known a. the " Fundamental Orders of c^eetic.
Connecticut," created the government under
which the people of Connecticut lived for nearly two
centuries before they deemed it necessary to amend
it. The charter granted to Connecticut by Charles
II. in 1662 was simply a royal recognition of the gov-
ernment actually in operation since the adoption of
the Fundamental Orders.
In those colonies which had charters these docu-
ments served, to a certain extent, the purposes of a
written constitution. They limited the legislative
powers of the colonial assemblies. The question
sometimes came up as to whether some stat-
, Oenuinal
ute made by the assembly was not in excess development
of the poiers conferred by the charter. '^"^^
rm • • ii • • toward the
This question usually arose m connection modern state
, "^ , _ _ coDBtitution.
with some particular law case, and thus came
before the courts for settlement, — first before the
courts of the colony ; afterwards it might sometimes
be carried on appeal before the Privy Coimcil in Eng-
land. If the court decided that the statute was in
transgression of the charter, the statute was thereby
annulled.^ The colonial legislature, therefore, was
not a supreme body, even within the colony ; its au-
thority was restricted by the terms of the charter.
Thus the Americans, for more than a century before
the Bevolution, were familiarized with the idea of a
legislature as a representative body acting within cer-
tain Kmit8 prescribed by a written document. They
had no knowledge or experience of a supreme legis-
lative body, such as the House of Commons has be-
1 Bryoe, American Commanwealtht vol. i. pp. 243, 415.
202 WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS.
come since the founders of American states left Eng-
land. At the time of the Revolution, when the sev-
eral states framed new governments, they simply put
a written constitution into the position of supremacy
formerly occupied by the chai'ter. Instead of a docu-
ment expressed in terms of a royal grant, they adopted
a document expressed in terms of a popular edict. To
this the legislature must conform ; and people were
already somewhat familiar with the method of testing
the constitutionality of a law by getting the matter
brought before the courts. The mental habit thus
generated was probably more important than any
other single circumstance in enabling our Federal
Union to be formed. Without it, indeed, it would
have been impossible to form a durable union.
Before pursuing this subject, we may observe that
American state constitutions have altered very much
in character since the first part of the present
Abnormal . . •
development ccnturv. The earlier constitutions were con-
of the state ** , , ,
constitution, fined to a general outline of the or&^anization
encroaching
upon the of the ffovemment. They did not undertake
provmce of *^ *^
the legisia- to make the laws, but to prescribe the eondi-
ture. , . .
tions under which laws might be made and
executed. Becent state constitutions enter more and
more boldly upon the general work of legislation. For
example, in some states they specify what kinds of prop-
erty shall be exempt ftom seizure for debt, they make
regulations as to railroad freight-charges, they prescribe
sundry details of practice in the courts, or they forbid
the sale of intoxicating liquors. Until recently such
subjects would have been left to the legislatures, no
one would have thought of putting them into a consti-
tution. The motive in so doing is a wish to put cer-
tain laws into such a shape that it will be difficult to
repeal them. What a legislature sees fit to enact this
WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS. 203
•year it may see fit to repeal next year. But amending
a state constitution is a slow and cumbrous process.
An amendment may be originated in the legislature^
where it must secure more than a mere majority —
perhaps a three fifths or two thirds vote — in order to
pass ; in some states it must be adopted by two suc-
cessive legislatures, perhaps by two thirds of one and
three fourths of the next ; in some states not more
than one amendment can be brought before the same
legislature ; in some it is provided that amendments
must not be submitted to the people oftener than once
in five years ; and so on. After the amendment has
at length made its way through the legislature, it must
be ratified by a vote of the people at the next general
election. Another way to get a constitution amended
is to call a convention for that purpose. In order to
call a convention, it is usually necessary to obtain a
two thirds vote in the legislature ; but in some states
^^ the legislature is required at stated intervals to sub-
mit to the people the question of holding such a con-
vention, as in New Hampshire every seven years : in
Iowa, every ten years; in Michigan, every sixteen
years ; in New York, Ohio, Maryland, and Virginia,
every twenty years."i A ;onvention is a re^^Z
tative body elected by the people to meet at some
specified time and place for some specified purpose,
and its existence ends with the accomplishment of that
purpose. It is in this occasional character that the con-
vention differs from an ordinary legislative assembly.
With such elaborate checks against hasty action, it
is to be presumed that if a law can be once embodied
in a state constitution, it will be likely to have some
permanence. Moreover, a direct vote by the peo-
^ See Henry Hitchcock's admirable monograph, Amaioan
State ConstUutians, p. 19.
204 WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS.
pie gives a weightier sanction to a law than a vote-
in the legislature. There is also, no doubt, a disposi-
tion to distrust legislatures and in some measure do
their work for them by direct popular enactment.
For such reasons some recent state constitutions have
come almost to resemble bodies of statutes. Mr.
Woodrow Wilson suggestively compares this kind of
popular legislation with tiie Swiss practice
**Beferaii- kuown as the Referendum ; in most of the
Swiss cantons an important act of the legist
lature does not acquire the force of law imtil it has
been referred to the people and voted on by them.
" The objections to the referendum^^'* says Mr. Wilson,
*^ are, of course, that it assumes a discriminating judg-
ment and a fulness of information on the part of the
people touching questions of public policy which they
do not often possess, and that it lowers the sense of re-
sponsibility on the part of legislators.'' ^ Another se-
rious objection to our recent practice is that it tends to
confuse the very valuable distinction between a consti-
tution and a body of statutes, to necessitate a frequent
revision of constitutions, and to increase the cumbrous-
ness of law-making. It would, however, be premature
at the present time to pronounce confidently upon a
practice of such recent origin. It is clear that its
tendency is extremely democratic, and that it implies
a high standard of general intelligence and independ-
ence among the people. If the evils of the practice
are found to outweigh its benefits, it will doubtless
fall into disfavour.
QUESTIONS ox THE TEXT.
What is to be said with regard to the following topioB?
I. A power above the legislature : —
a. The constitution.
> Wilson, The State, p. 490.
WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS. 205
h. The relation of the oourts to hnws that violate the consti-
tution.
e. The importance of this relation.
d. The American origin of the written constitation.
2. The germs of the idea of a written constitution : —
a. The theory of a ** social contract."
h. The objection to this theory.
c. Koman origin of the idea of contract.
3. MedisBval charters : —
a. The charter of a town.
h. The word charter.
c. Magna Charta.
d. The difference between a charter and a constitution.
e. The form of Magna Charta as contrasted with its essen-
tial nature.
4. Documents somewhat resembling written constitutions : *-
a. The Declaration of Rights.
b. The BiU of Rights.
5. The foreshadowing of the American idea of written consti-
tutions : —
a. Two conditions especially notable in England in the sev-
enteenth century.
h. The influence of these conditions on popular views of gov-
ernment.
c. The " Instrument of Government."
d. Sir Harry Vane's proposition.
e. Why allude to Vane's scheme when nothing came of it ?
6. Early suggestions of written constitutions in America : —
a. The compact on the Mayflower.
h. Wherein the compact fell short of a written constitution,
c. The " Fundamental Orders of Connecticut."
7* The development of the colonial charter into a written con-
stitution : —
a. The limitation of the powers of colonial assemblies.
h. The decision of questions relating to the trangression of a
charter by a colonial legislature.
c. The colonial assembly as contrasted with the House of
Commons.
d. The difference between the written constitution and the
charter for which it was substituted.
e. The readiness of the people to adopt written constitutions.
^- The extensive development of the written constitution in
some states : —
206 WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS.
a. The simplicity of the earlier constitatioiis.
h. Illustrations of the legislative tendencies of later consti-
tations.
c. The motive for saoh extension of a constitution.
d. The difficulty of amending a constitution,
«. The legislative method of amendment.
f. The convention method of amendment.
g. The presumed advantage of embodying laws in the oonsli-
tution.
h, A comparison with the Swiss Referendum*
t. Objections to the Swiss Referendum.
j. Other objections to the practice of putting laws into the
constitution.
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS AND DIRECTIONS.
1. Do you belong to any society that has a constitution ? Has
the society rules apart from the constitution ? Which
may be changed the more readily ? Why not put all the
rules into the constitution ?
2. Read the constitution of your state in part or in full. Give
some account of its principal divisions, of the topics it
deals with, and its magnitude or fulness. Are there any
amendments ? If so, mention two or three, and give the
reasons for their adoption. Is there any declaration of
rights in it ? If so, what are some of the rights declared,
and whose are they said to be ?
3. Where is the original of your state constitution kept ? What
sort of looking document do you suppose it to be ?
Where would you look for a copy of it ? If a question
arises in any court about the interpretation of the consti-
tution, must the original be produced to settle the wording
of the document ?
4. Has any effort been made in your state to put into the con-
stitution matters that have previously been subjects of leg-
islative action ? If so, give an account of the effort, and
the public attitude towards it.
5. Which is preferable, — a constitution that commands the
approval of the people as a whole or that which has the
support of a dominant political party only ?
6. Suppose it is your personal conviction that a law is unconsti-
tutional, may you disregard it? What consequences
might ensue from such disregard ?
WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS. 207
7* May people honestly and amicably differ aboat the interpre-
tation of the constitation or of a law, in a particular
case ? If important interests are dependent on the inter-
pretation, how can the true one be found out ? Does a
lawyer's opinion settle the interpretation ? What value
has such an opinion ? Where must people go for au-
thoritative and final interpretations of the laws? Can
they get such interpretations by simply asking for them ?
8. The constitution of New Hampshire provides that when the
governor cannot discharge the duties of his office, the
president of the senate shall assume them. During the
severe sickness of a governor recently, the president of
the senate hesitated to act in his stead ; it was not clear that
the situation was grave enough to warrant such a course.
Accordingly the attorney-general of the state brought an
action against the president of the senate for not doing
his duty ; the court considered the situation, decided
against the president of the senate, and ordered him to
become acting governor. Why was this suit necessary ?
Was it conducted in a hostile spirit ? Wherein did the
decision help the state? Wherein did it help the de-
fendant ? Wherein may it possibly prove helpful in the
future history of the state ?
9* Mention particular things that the governor, the legislature,
and the judiciary of your state have done or may do.
Then find the section or clause or wording in your state
constitution that gives authority for each of these things.
For example, read the particular part that authorizes your
legislature : —
a. To incorporate a city.
b. To compel children to attend school.
c. To buy uniforms for a regiment of soldiers.
d. To establish a death penalty.
e. To send a committee abroad to study a system of water-
works.
10. Trace the authority of a school-teacher, a policeman, a select-
man, a mayor, or of any public officer, back to some part
of your constitution.
1 1. Mention any parts of your constitution that seem general
and somewhat indefinite, and that admit, therefore, of
much freedom in interpretation.
12. Show how the people are, in one aspect, subordinate to the
constitution ; in another, superior to it.
208 WRITTEN CONSTITUTIONS.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.
Written CoNSTrnmoNS. — Yeiy little has been written or
published with reference to the history of the development of
the idea of a written constitution. The student will find some
suggestive hints in Hannis Taylor's Origin and Growth of the
English Constitutiorif vol. L, Boston, 1889. See Henry Hitchcock's
American State Constitutions; a Study of their Growth, N. T.,1887,
a learned and valuable essay. See also J. H, U, Studies, I., zi.,
Alexander Johnston, The Genesis of a New England State (^Con-
necticut) ; III., ix.-z., Horace Davis, American Constitutions ; also
Preston's Documents Illustrative of American History, 1606-1863,
N. T., 1886 ; Stubbs, Select Charters and other Illustrations of
English Constitutional History, Oxford, 1870 ; Oardiner's Consti"
tutional Documents of (he Puritan Revolution, Oxford. 1888.
CHAPTER VnL
THE FEDERAL UNION.
§ 1. Origin of the Federal Union.
Haying now sketched the origin and nature of
written constitutions, we are prepared to understand
how by means of such a document the government of
our Federal Union was called into existence. We
have already described so much of the civil govern-
ment in operation in the United States that this ac-
count can be made much more concise than if we had
started at the top instead of the bottom and begun
to portray our national government before saying a
word about states and coimties and towns. Bit by bit
the general theory of American self-government has
already been set before the reader. We have now to
observe, in conclusion, what a magnificent piece of
constructive work has been performed in accordance
with that general theory. We have to observe the
building up of a vast empire out of strictly self-gov-
erning elements.
There was always one important circumstance in
favour of the union of the thirteen American colonies
into a federal nation. The inhabitants were sngUahin.
all substantially one people. It is true that S*^°SSS
in some of the colonies there were a good "**^
many persons not of English ancestry, but the Eng-
lish type absorbed and assimilated everything else.
210 THE FEDERAL UNION.
All spoke the English language, all had English insti-
tutions. Except the development of the written con-
stitution, every bit of civil government described in
the preceding pages came to America directly from
England, and not a bit of it from any other country,
unless by being first filtered through England. Our
institutions were as English as our speech. It waa
therefore comparatively easy for people in one colony
to understand people in another, not only as to their
words but as to their political ideas. Moreover, dur-
ing the first half of the eighteenth century, the com-
mon danger from the aggressive French enemy on the
north and west went far toward awakening in the
thirteen colonies a common interest. And after the
French enemy had been removed, the assertion by
parliament of its alleged right to tax the Americans
threatened all the thirteen legislatures at once, and
thus in fact drove the colonies into a kind of federal
union.
Confederations among states have generally owed
their origin, in the first instance, to military necessi-
ties. The earliest league in America, among white
TheWew people at least, was the confederacy of New
^^^dfracy England colonies formed in 1643, chiefly for
(1643-84). defence against the Indians. It was finally
dissolved amid the troubles of 1684, when the first
government of Massachusetts was overthrown. Along
the Atlantic coast the northern and the southern col-
onies were for some time distinct groups, separated
by the unsettled portion of the central zone. The
settlement of Pennsylvania, beginning in 1681, filled
this gap and made the colonies continuous from the
French frontier of Canada to the Spanish frontier of
Florida. The danger from France began to be clearly
apprehended after 1689, and in 1698 one of the
ORIGIN OF THE FEDERAL UNION, 211
earliest plans of union was proposed by William
Penn. In 1764, just as the final struggle with France
was about to begin, there came Franklin's famous
plan for a permanent federal union; and this plan
was laid before a congress assembled at AibMiyCon-
Albany for renewing the alliances with the ^^"^^ ^^^'^^
Six Nations.^ Only seven colonies were represented
in this congress. Observe the word " congress." If
it had been a legislative body it would more likely
have been called a ^^ parliament." But of course it
was nothing of the sort. It was a diplomatic body,
composed of delegates representing state governments,
like European congresses, — like the Congress of
Berlin, for example, which tried to adjust the Eastern
Question in 1878. Eleven years after the „^
BtAmp Act
Albany Congress, upon the news that parlia- JJ^gg'^
ment had passed the Stamp Act, a congress
of nine colonies assembled at New York in October,
1765, to take action thereon.
Nine years elapsed without another congress. Mean-
while the political excitement, with occasional lulls, went
on increasing, and some sort of cooperation between the
colonial governments became habitual. In 1768, after
parliament had passed the Townshend revenue acts,
there was no congress, but Massachusetts sent a circu-
lar letter to the other colonies, inviting them to co-
operate in measures of resistance, and the committer
other colonies responded favourably. In JiSSS^
1772, as we have seen, committees of corre- ("^^-ts).
spondence between the towns of Massachusetts acted
as a sort of provisional government for the common-
wealth. In 1773 Dabney Carr, of Virginia, enlarged
^ Franklin's plan was af terwai'd submitted to the several leg<-
islatores of the colonies, and was everywhere rejected because
the need for union was nowhere strongly felt by the people.
212 THE FEDERAL UNION.
upon this idea, and committees of correspondenoe were
forthwith instituted between the several colonies.
Thus the habit of acting in concert began to be
formed. In 1774, after parliament had passed an act
overthrowing the government of Massachusetts, along
with other offensive measures, a congress assembled
in September at Philadelphia, the city most centrally
situated as well as the largest. If the remonstrances
tinsntai ^^P*®^ ^* *^ cougrcss had been heeded by
?i??KS the British government, and peace had fol-
<'"*^>- lowed, this congress would probably have
been as temporary an affair as its predecessors ; people
would probably have waited until overtaken by some
other emergency. But inasmuch as war followed, the
congress assembled again in May, 1775, and there-
after became practically a permanent institution until
it died of old age with the year 1788.
This congress was called ^^ continental " to distinr
guish it from the "provincial congresses" held in
several of the colonies at about the same time. The
thirteen colonies were indeed but a narrow strip on
the edge of a vast and in large part unexplored conti-
nent, but the word " continental " was convenient for
distinguishing between the whole confederacy and its
several members.
The Continental Congress began to exercise a cer-
tain amount of directive authority from the time of
its first meeting in 1774. Such authority as it had
arose simply from the fact that it represented an
agreement on the part of the several governments to
The several P^^^^® ^ Certain line of policy. It was a
states were diplomatic and executive, but scarcelv vet
never at any * , , J J
^e TOjrar- a legislative body. Nevertheless it was the
visible symbol of a kind of union between
the states. There never was a time when any one
ORIGIN OF THE FEDERAL UNION. 213
of the original states exercised singly the full pow-
ers of sovereignty. Not one of them was ever a small
sovereign state like Denmark or Portugal. As they
acted together imder the common direction of the Brit-
ish government in 1759, the year of Quebec, so they
acted together under the common direction of that
revolutionary body, the Continental Congress, in 1776,
the year of Bunker Hill. In that year a ^^ continental
army" was organized in the name of the ^^ United
Colonies." In the following year, when independence
was declared, it was done by the concerted action of
all the colonies ; and at the same time a committee
was appointed by Congress to draw up a written con-
stitution. This constitution, known as the ^ ._„ ,
. The AitlolM
** Articles of Confederation," was submitted ofOpnfed-
to Congress in the autumn of 1777, and was
sent to the several states to be ratified. A unanimous
ratification was necessary, and it was not until March
1781, that unanimity was secured and the articles
adopted.
Meanwhile the Bevolutionary War had advanced
into its last stages, having been carried on from the
outset under the general direction of the Continental
Congress. When reading about this period of our
history, the student must be careful not to be misled
by the name '^ congress " into reasoning as if there
were any resemblance whatever between that body
and the congress which was created by our Federal
Constitution. The Continental Congress was not the
parent of our Federal Congress; the former died
without offspring, and the latter had a very different
origin, as we shall soon see. The former simply be-
queathed to the latter aname, that was all.
The Continental Congress was an assembly of dele-
gates from the thirteen states, which from 1774 to
214 THE FEDERAL UNION.
1783 held its sessions at Philadelphia.^ It owned
Katore and ^^ federal property, not even the house in
SSSS'^tS* which it assembled, and after it had been
Congress. tumcd out of doors by a mob of drunken
soldiers in June, 1783, it flitted about from place to
place, sitting now at Trenton, now at Annapolis, and
finally at New York.^ Each state sent to it as many
delegates as it chose, though after the adoption of the
articles no state could send less than two or more than
seven. Each state had one vote, and it took nine
votes, or two thirds of the whole, to carry any meas-
ure of importance. One of the delegates was chosen
president or chairman of the congress, and this posi-
tion was one of great dignity and considerable influ-
ence, but it was not essentially different from the posi-
tion of any of the other delegates. There were no
distinct executive officers. Important executive mat-
ters were at first assigned to committees, such as the
Finance Committee and the Board of War, though at
the most trying time the finance committee was a com-
mittee of one, in the person of Eobert Morris, who was
commonly called the Financier. iDhe work of the
finance committee was chiefly trying to solve the prob-
lem of paying bills without spending money, for there
was seldom any money to spend. Congress could not
tax the people or recruit the army. When it wanted
money or troops, it could only ask the state govern-
ments for them ; and generally it got from a fifth to
a fourth part of the troops needed, but of money a far
^ Except for a few days in December, 1776, when it fled to
Baltimore ; and again from September, 1777, to June, 1778,
when Philadelphia was in possession of the British ; during thai
interval Congress held its meetings at Tork in Pennsylvania.
^ See my Critical Period of American History t pp. 112, 271,
806.
ORIGIN OF THE FEDERAL UNION. 215
smaller proportion. Sometimes it borrowed money
from Holland or France, but. often its only resource
was to issue paper promises to pay, or the so-called
Continental paper money. Tliei*e were no federal
courts,^ nor marshals to execute federal decrees. Con-
gress might issue orders, but it had no means of com-
pelling obedience.
The Continental Congress was therefore not in the
full sense a sovereign body. A government is not
really a government until it can impose taxes and thus
command the money needful for keeping it r was not
in existence. Nevertheless the Congress ex- SSJid^idth
ercised some of the most indisputable func- •^▼^'•^gn*^'
tions of sovereignty. '^ It declared the independence
of the United States ; it contracted an offensive and
defensive alliance with France ; it raised and organ-
ized a Continental army ; it borrowed large sums of
money, and pledged what the lenders understood to
be the national credit for their repayment ; it issued
an inconvertible paper currency, gramed letters of
marque, and built a navy."^ Finally it ratified a
treaty of peace with Great Britain. So that the Con-
gress was really, in many respects, and in the eyes of
the world at large, a sovereign body. Time soon
showed that the continued exercise of such powers
was not compatible with the absence of the power to
tax the people. In truth the situation of the Conti-
nental Congress was an illogical situation. In the ef-
fort of throwing off the sovereignty of Great Britain,
the people of these states were constructing a federal
union faster than they realized. Their theory of the
^ Except the << Court of Appeals in Cases of Capture," for an
admirable account of which see Jameson's Essays in the Consdr
tutional History of the United States j pp. 1-45.
* Critical Period, p. 93.
216 THE FEDERAL UNION.
situation did not keep pace with the facts, and their
first attempt to embody their theory, in the Articles
of Confederation, was not unnaturally a failure.
At first the powers of the Congress were vague.
They were what are called " implied war powers ; "
that is to say, the Congress had a war with Great
Britain on its hands, and must be supposed to have
power to do whatever was necessary to bring the war
to a successful conclusion. At first, too, when it had
only begun to issue paper money, there was a momen-
tary feeling of prosperity. Military success added to
its appearance of strength, and the reputation of the
Congress reached its highwater mark early in 1778,
after the capture of Burgoyne's army and the mak-
ing of the alliance with France. After that time,
with the weary prolonging of the war, the increase of
Decline of ^^ pubUc debt, and the collapse of the pa*
nenSocii- P^^ currcucy , its reputation steadily declined.
gress. There was also much work to be done in re-
organizing the state governments, and this kept at
home in the state legislatures many of the ablest men
who would otherwise have been sent to the Congress.
Thus in point of intellectual capacity the latter body
was distinctly inferior in 1783 to what it bad been
when first assembled nine years earlier.
The arrival of peace did not help the Congress, but
made matters worse. When the absolute necessity of
presenting a united front to the common enemy was
removed, the weakness of the union was shown in
many ways that were alarming. The sentiment of
union was weak. In spite of the community in Ian*
guage and institutions, which was so favourable to
union, the people of the several states had many local
prejudices which tended to destroy the union in its in-
fancy. A man was quicker to remember that he was
ORIGIN OF THE FEDERAL UNION. 217
a New Yorker or a Massachusetts man than that he
was an American and a citizen of the United States.
Neighbouring states levied custom-house duties against
one another, or refused to admit into their Anarchicia
markets each other's produce, or had quar- *«nd«»<»*fi*
reLs about boundaries which went to the verge of war.
Things grew worse every year until by the autumn
of 1786, when the Congress was quite bankrupt and
most of the states nearly so, when threats of secession
were heard both in New England and in the South,
when there were riots in several states and Massachu-
setts was engaged in suppressing armed rebellion,
when people in Europe were beginning to ask whether
we were more likely to be seized upon by France or
reconquered piecemeal by Great Britain, it came to be
thought necessary to make some kind of a change.
Men were most unwillingly brought to this conclu-
sion, because they were used to their state assemblies
and not afraid of them, but they were afraid of in-
creasing the powers of any government superior to the
states, lest they should thus create an unmanageable
tyranny. They believed that even anarchy, though a
dreadful evil, is not so dreadful as despotism, and for
this view there is much to be said. After no end of
trouble a convention was at length got together at
Philadelphia in May, 1787, and after four months of
work witii closed doors, it was able to offer ^ „ , ,
' . . The Federal
to the country the new Federal Constitution, cosifntion
(1787)>
Both in its character and in the work which
it did, this Federal Convention, over which Washing-
ton presided, and of which Franklin, Madison, and
Hamilton were members, was one of the most remark-
able deliberative bodies known to history.
We have seen that the fundamental weakness of
the Continental Congress lay in the fact that it could
218 THE FEDERAL UNION.
not tax the people. Hence although it could for a
time exert other high functions of sovereignty, it could
only do so while money was supplied to it from other
sources than taxation ; from contributions made by
the states in answer to its « requisitions," from foreign
loans, and from a paper currency. But such resources
could not last long. It was like a man's trying to live
upon his own promissory notes and upon gifts and un-
secured loans from his friends. When the supply of
money was exhausted, the Congress soon found that
it could no longer comport itself as a sovereign power ;
it could not preserve order at home, and the situation
abroad may be illustrated by the fact that George III.
kept garrisons in several of our northwestern frontier
towns and would not send a minister to the United
States. This example shows that, among the sov-
ereign powers of a government, the power of taxation
is the fundamental one upon which all the others de-
pend. Nothing can go on without money.
But the people of the several states would never
consent to grant the power of taxation to such a body
as the Continental Congress, in which they were not
represented. The Congress was not a legislature, but
a diplomatic body ; it did not represent the people,
but the state governments ; and a large state like
Pennsylvania had no more weight in it than a little
state like Delaware. If there was to be any central
assembly for the whole union, endowed with the
power of taxation, it must be an assembly represent-
ing the American people just as the assembly of a
single state represented the people of the state.
As soon as this point became clear, it was seen to
be necessary to throw the Articles of Confederation
overboard, and construct a new national government
As was said above, our Federal Congress is not de-
ORIGIN OF THE FEDERAL UNION. 219
scended from the Continental Congress, Its parent-
age is to be sought in the state legislatures. Our
federal government was constructed after the general
model of the state governments, with some points
copied from British usages, and some points that were
original and new.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. What are the reasons for reserving the Constitution of the
United States for the concluding chapter ?
2. Circumstances that favoured union of the colonies : —
a. The origin of their inhabitants.
&. All the details of their civil government.
c. The ease with which they understood one another.
d. Their common dangers, two in particular.
3. Earlier unions among the colonies : —
a. The New England Confederacy, — its time, purpose, and
duration.
h. The French danger, and plans to meet it.
c. The Albany Congress, — its nature and immediate purpose.
d. The Stamp Act Congress.
4. Committees of correspondence : —
a. The circular letter of Massachusetts in 1768.
6. Town committees of correspondence in Massachusetts in
1772.
c. Colonial committees of correspondence in 1773.
(/. The habit established through these committees.
5. The Continental Congress : —
a. The immediate causes that led to it.
6. How it might have been temporary.
c. How it became permanent.
d. Its date, place of meeting, and duration.
e. Why "continental" as distinguished from "provincial ? "
f. The nature and extent of its authority.
g. The states represented in it never fully sovereign.
6. Give an account of the "Articles of Confederation."
7. Distinguish between the Continental Congress and the
Federal.
8. The powers of the Continental Congress : —
a. Its homelessness and wandering.
6. Its delegates and their voting power.
220 THB FEDERAL UNFON.
c Us pcvBoni^ offiBer.
d. Its mmagemeat of cimsutire mattefs.
e. The fiiBuiTft eonunittee and its problemt.
f. The xaisuig of monej.
g. The oompelliiig of obedience.
9. The Coiitinentad Congress not m sofreteigii bodj : —
a. The nature of real government.
h. Some functions of soveieignty exercised hy the Congress*
c. The sitnation illogicaL
10. Explain the ** impEed war powers " of the Congress.
1 1. When was the Congress at the height of its reputationy and
why?
12. Explain the decline in its repotatiim fnnn 1778 to 1783.
13. The alarming weakness of the onion after 1783 : —
a. The effect d. peace np<Hi the nnioo.
h. Local prejudices.
c. State antagonisms.
d. The gloomy outlook in 1786l
14. The Federal ConTcntum in 1787 : — -
a. The reluctance to make the change that was Mt to be
needed.
h. Some facts about the Conrention.
c. The character of its delegates.
d. The fundamental weakness of the Continental Congress.
e. The fundamental power of a strong goyemment.
f. The objection to granting the power of taxation to the
Continental Congress.
g. The sort of assembly demanded for exercising the taxing
power.
A. The model on which the federal government was built.
§ 2. The Federal Congress.
The federal House of Bepresentatives is descended,
through the state houses of representatives, from the
colonial assemblies. It is an assembly representing
the whole population of the country as if it were all
^ „ in one ereat state. It is composed of mem-
The House ° ■■■
of Repreaen- bcrs choscu cvcry othcr year by the people
of the states. Persons in any state who are
qualified to vote for state representatives are qualified
THE FEDERAL CONGRESS. 221
to vote for federal representatives. This arrange-
ment left the power of regulating the suffrage in the
hands of the several states, where it still remains, save
for the restriction imposed in 1870 for the protection
of the southern freedmen, A candidate for election
to the House of Representatives must be twenty-five
years old, must have been seven years a citizen of the
United States, and must be an inhabitant of the state
in which he is chosen.
As the Federal Congress is a taxing body, repre-
sentatives and direct taxes are apportioned among
the several states according to the same rule, that is,
according to population. At this point a difficulty
arose in the Convention as to whether slaves should
be counted as population. If they were to be counted,
the relative weight of the slave states in all matters of
national legislation would be much increased. The
northern states thought, with reason, that it would be
unduly increased. The difficulty was ad- ^ ^
, •' , , •' , The three
justed by a compromise according to which fifths com.
• •' * o promiae.
five slaves were to be reckoned as three per-
sons. Since the abolition of slavery this provision
has become obsolete, but until 1860 it was a very im-
portant fa^stor in American history.^
In the federal House of Representatives the great
states of course have much more weight than the
small states. In 1790 the four largest states had 32
representatives, while the other nine had only 33i
The largest state, Virginia, had 10 representatives to
1 from Delaware. These disparities have increased.
In 1880, out of thirty-eight states the nine largest had
a majority of the house, and the largest state. New
York, had 34 representatives to 1 from Delaware.
This feature of the House of Representatives caused
* See ray Critical Period, pp. 267-262.
i
222 THE FEDERAL UNION.
the smaller states in the Convention to oppose the
whole scheme of consteucting a new government.
They were determined that great and small states
should have equal weight in Congress. Their stead-
fast opposition threatened to ruin everything, when
fortunately a method of compromise was discovered.
It was intended that the national legislature, in imita-
tion of the state legislatures, should have an upper
house or senate ; and at first the advocates of a strong
national &:ovemment proposed that the senate
The Con- i^i-i i« i i-i^
neoticat also should represent population, thus differ-
ing from the lower house only m the way m
which we have seen that it generally differed in the
several states. But it happened that in the state of
Connecticut the custom was peculiar. There it had
always been the custom to elect the governor and
upper house by a majority vote of the whole people,
while for each township there was an equality of rep-
resentation in the lower house. The Connecticut del-
egates in the Convention, therefore, being familiar
with a legislature in which the two houses were com-
posed on different principles, suggested a compromise.
Let the House of Eepresentatives, they said, repre-
*sent the people, and let the Senate represent the
states ; let all the states, great and small, be repre-
sented equally in the federal Senate. Such was the
famous " Connecticut Compromise." "Without it the
Convention would probably have broken up without
accomplishing anything. When it was adopted, half
the work of making the new government was doue,
for the small states, having had their fears thus allayed
by the assurance that they were to be equally repre-
sented in the Senate, no longer opposed the work but ,
cooperated in it most zealously.
Thus it came to pass that the upper house of our
THE FEDERAL CONGRESS. 223
national legislature is composed of two senators from
each state. As they represent the state, they are chosen
by its legislature and not by the people ; but
when they have taken their seats in the Sen-
ate they do not vote by states, like the delegates in
the Continental Congress. On the contrary each senr
ator has one vote, and the two senators from the same
state may, and often do, vote on opposite sides.
In accordance with the notion that an upper house
should be somewhat less democratic than a lower
house, the term of office for senators was made longer
than for representatives. The tendency is to make
the Senate respond more slowly to changes in popular
sentiment, and this is often an advantage. Popular
opinion is often very wrong at particular moments,
but with time it is apt to correct its mistakes. We
are usually in more danger of suffering from hasty
legislation than from tardy legislation. Senators are
chosen for a term of six years, and one third of the num-
ber of terms expire every second year, so that, while
the whole Senate may be renewed by the lapse of six
years, there is never a " new Senate." The Senate
has thus a continuous existence and a permanent or-
ganization; whereas each House of Representatives
expires at the end of its two years' term, and is suc-
ceeded by a " new House," which requires to be organ-
issed by electing its officers, etc., before proceeding to
business. A candidate for the senatorship must have
leached the age of thirty, must have been nine years
a citizen of the United States, and must be an inhab-
itant of the state which he represents.
The constitution leaves the times, places, and man-
ner of holding elections for senators and representa-
tives to be prescribed ' in each state by its own legisla-
ture ; but it gives to Congress the power to alter such
224 THE FEDERAL UNION.
regulationft, except as to the place of choosing sen-
ators. Here we see a vestige of the original theory
according to which the Senate was to be peculiarly the
home of state rights.
In the composition of the House of Bepresentatives
the state legislatures play a very important part. For
the purposes of the election a state is divided into dis-
tricts corresponding to the number of representatives
the state is entitled to send to Congress. These electo-
Eiectorai ^ districts are marked out by the legislature,
^^■'^°*** and the division is apt to be made by the
preponderating party with an unfairness that is at
once shameful and ridiculous. The aim, of course, is
so to lay out the districts ^' as to secure in the greatest
possible number of them a majority for the party
which conducts the operation. This is done some-
times by throwing the greatest possible number of
hostile voters into a district which is anyhow certain
to be hostile, sometimes by adding to a district where
parties are equally divided some place in which the ma*
jority of friendly voters is sufficient to turn the scale.
There is a district in Mississippi (the so-called Shoe
String district) 250 miles long by 30 broad, and an-
other in Pennsylvania resembling a dumb-belL . . .
In Missouri a district has been contrived longer, if
measured along its windings, than the state itself, into
which as large a nimiber as possible of the negro
voters have been thrown." ^ This trick is called " ger-
"Gerryman- rymandcriug^" from Elbridge Gerry, of Mas-
^*^^" sachusetts, who was vice-president of the
United States from 1813 to 1817. It seems to have
been first devised in 1788 by the enemies of the Fed-
eral Constitution in Virginia, in order to prevent the
election of James Madison to the first Congress, and
^ Bryoe, American Commonwealth, vol. i. p. 121.
THE FEDERAL CONGRESS. 225
fortunately it vas nnsuoceasful.^ It was iatrodaoed
some years afterward Into Massaclinsetts. In 1812,
while Gerry was governor of that 8tat«, the Ropubli-
oan legislature redistributed the districts in such wiee
that the shapes of the towns forming a single district
in Essex county gave to the district a somewhat drag*
on-like contour. This was indicated upon a map of
Massachusetts which Benjamin Russell, aa ardent
Federalist and editor of the *' Centinel," hung up over
the desk in his ofBce. The celebrated painter, Gilbert
Stuart, coming into the ofBce one day and observing
the uncouth figure, added with his pencil a head, wings,
and claws, and excl^med, "That will do for a sala-
mander I " " Better say a Gerrymander I " growled
• Tyler'a Patrick Henry, p. 313.
226 THE FEDERAL UNION.
the editor ; and the outlandish name, thus duly coined,
soon came into general currency.^
When after an increase in its number of represen-
tatives the state has failed to redistribute its districts,
the additional member or members are voted for upon
a general state ticket, and are called ^^ representatives
at large." In Maine, where the census of 1880 had
reduced the number of representatives and there was
some delay in the redistribution, Congress allowed the
State in 1882 to elect all its representatives upon a
general ticket. The advantage of the district system
is that the candidates are likely to be better known by
The election their neighbours, but the election at large is
■***'«®- perhaps more likely to secure able men.^ It
is the American custom to nominate only residents of
the district as candidates for the House of Kepresen-
tatives. A citizen of Albany, for example, would not
be nominated for the district in which Buffalo is situ-
ated. In the British practice, on the other hand, if
an eminent man cannot get a nomination in his own
county or borough, there is nothing to prevent his
standing for any other county or borough. This sys-
tem seems more favourable to the independence of the
legislator than our system. Some of its advantages
are obtained by the election at large.
Congress must assemble at least once in every year,
and the constitution appoints the first Monday in De-
Time of a»- Cumber f or the time of meeting ; but Con-
aembiing. gregg can, if worth while, enact a law chang-
* Winsor's Memorial History qf Boston^ vol. iii. p. 212 ; see
also Bryce, loc, cit. The word is sometimes incorrectlj pro-
nounced " jerry mauder/' Mr. Winsor observes that the back
Hne of the creature's body forms a profile caricature of Greny's
iBjce, with the nose at Middleton.
' The difference is similar to the difference between the French
KTutin fVarrondissement and scrutin de liste.
THE FEDERAL CONGRESS. 227
ing the time. The established custom is to hold the
election for representatives upon the same day as the
election for president, the Tuesday after the first
Monday in November. As the period of the new
administration does not begin until the fourth day of
the following March, the new House of Representa-
tives does not assemble until the December following
that date, unless the new president should at some ear-
Uer moment summon an extra session of Congress. It
thus happens that ordinarily the representatives of the
nation do not meet for more than a year after their
election ; and as their business is at least to give legis-
lative expression to the popular opinion which elected
them, the delay is in this instance regarded by many
persons as inconvenient and injudicious.
Each house is judge of the elections, qualifications,
and returns of its own members; determines its own
rules of procedure, and may punish its members for
disorderly behaviour, or by a two thirds vote expel a
member. Absent members may be compelled under
penalties to attend. Each house is required to keep a
journal of its proceedings and at proper intervals to
publish it, except such parts as for reasons of public
policy had better be kept secret. At the request of
one fifth of the members present, the yeas and nays
must be entered on the journal. During the session
of Congress neither house may, without consent of
the other, adjourn for more than three days, or to any
other place than that in which Congress is sitting.
Senators and representatives receive a salary fixed
by law, and as they are federal functionaries they are
paid from the federal treasury. In all cases, except
treason or felony or treach of the peace, they are
privileged from arrest during their attendance in Con-
eress, as also while on their way to it and while re-
^iLg home ; « and for aay speih or debate ia eithar
228 THE FEDERAL UNION.
house they shall not be questioned in any other plaoe.^
Prirnegeaof '^^^^s^ pTOvisious are reminisoeuces of the
members, ^yjj ^yg ^^eu the king strove to interfere,
by fair means or foul, with free speech in parliament ;
and they are important enough to be incorporated in
the supreme law of the land. No person can at the
same time hold any civil office under the United
States government and be a member of either house
of Congress.
The vice-president is the presiding officer of the
Senate, with power to vote only in case of a tie. The
House of Eepresentatives elects its presiding officer,
The Sneaker ^^^ ^^ callcd the Spcakcr. In the early his-
' tory of the House of Commons, its presiding
officer was naturally enough its spokesman. He oould
speak for it in addressing the crown. Henry of
Keighley thus addressed the crown in 1301, and there
were other instances during that century, until in
1376 the title of Speaker was definitely given to Sir
Thomas Hungerf ord, and from that date the list is un-
broken. The title was given to the presiding officers of
the American colonial assemblies, and thence it passed
on to the state and federal legislatures. The Speaker
presides over the debates, puts the question, and de-
cides points of order. He also appoints the commit-
tees of the House of Representatives, and as the
initiatory work in our legislation is now so largely
done by the committees, this makes him the most pow-
erful officer of the government except the President
The provisions for impeachment of public officers
are copied from the custom in England. Since the
fourteenth century the House of Commons has occa-
sionally exercised the power of impeaching the king's
ministers and other high public officers, and although
the power was not used during the sixteenth century^
THE FEDERAL CONGRESS. 229
it was afterward revived and conclusively established.
In 1701 it was enacted that the royal pardon
could not be pleaded against an impeach- numtinsng-
ment, and this act finally secured the respon-
sibility of the king's ministers to Parliament. An
impeachment is a kind of accusation or indictment
brought against a public officer by the House of Com-
mons. The court in which the case is tried is the
House of Lords, and the ordinary rules of judicial pro-
cedure are followed. The regular president of the
House of Lords is the Lord Chancellor, who is the
highest judicial officer in the kingdom. A simple ma-
jority vote secures conviction, and then it is left for the
House of Conmions to say whether judgment shall be
pronounced or not.
In the United States the House of Eepresentatives
has the sole power of impeachment, and the Senate
has the sole power to try all impeachments. When
the president of the United States is tried, impeach-
the chief -justice must preside. As a precau- SS?ted***^
tion against the use of impeachment for ®'**®®'
party purposes, a two thirds vote is required for con-
viction; and this precaution proved effectual (fortu-
nately, as most persons now admit) in the famous
case of President Johnson in 1868. In case of con-
viction the judgment cannot extend further than " to
removal from office, and disqualification to hold and
enjoy any office of honour, trust, or profit under the
United States ; " but the person convicted is liable
afterward to be tried and punished by the ordinary
process of law.
The provisions of the Constitution for legislation
are admirably simple. All bills for raising revenue
must originate in the lower house, but the upper
house may propose or concur with amendments, as
230 THE FEDERAL UNION.
on other bills. Hiis provision was inherited from
Parliament, through the colonial legislatures. After
a bill has passed both houses it must be sent to the
president for approvaL If he approves it, he signs
it; if not, he returns it to the house in which it
orififinated, with a written statement of his
Veto power • •
octheptw. objections, and this statement must be en-
tered in full upon the journal of the housa
The bill is then reconsidered, and if it obtains a two
thirds vote, it is sent, together with the objections, to
the other house. If it there likewise obtains a two
thirds vote, it becomes a law, in spite of the objec-
tions. Otherwise it fails. If the president keeps a
bill longer than ten days (Sundays excepted} with-
out signing it, it becomes a law without his signa-
ture ; unless Congress adjourns before the expiration
of the ten days, in which case it fails to become a law,
just as if it had been vetoed. This method of vetoing
a bill just before the expiration of a Congress, by
keeping it in one's pocket, so to speak, was dubbed a
" pocket veto," and was first employed by President
Jackson in 1829. The president's veto power is a
qualified form of that which formerly belonged to the
English sovereign but has now, as abeady observed,
become practically obsolete. As a means of guarding
the country against unwise legislation, it has proved
to be one of the most valuable features of our Federal
Constitution. In bad hands it cannot do much harm ;
it can only delay for a short time a needed law. But
when properly used it can save the country from laws
that if once enacted would sow seeds of disaster very
hard to eradicate ; and it has repeatedly done so. A
single man will often act intelligently where a group
of men act foolishly, and, as already observed, he is
apt to have a keener sense of responsibility.
THE FEDERAL CONGRESS. 231
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
What is to be said with regard to the following topicss ?
1. The House of Representatives : —
€L Its relation to the people.
6. The term of service.
c^ Qualifications of those who maj vote for representa-
tives.
d. Qualifications for membership.
€. The three fifths compromise.
2. The Connecticut Compromise.
a. The powers of the different states in the House.
5. Opposition to the scheme of a new government.
c. What the advocates of a strong government wanted the
Senate to represent.
d. A peculiar Connecticut system.
e. The suggestion of the Connecticut delegates,
y. The effect of the compromise.
3. The Senate : —
a. The number of senators.
5. The method of electing senators.
c. The voting of senators.
d. The term of service.
e. The maintenance of a continuous existenca
y. A comparison with the House in respect to nearness to the
people.
g. Qualifications for membership.
4* Elections for senators and representatives : —
a. Times, places, and manner of holding elections.
5. The power of Congress over state regulations.
c. Electoral districts.
d» The temptation to unfairness in laying out electoral dis-
tricts.
e. Illustrations of unfair divisicms.
fl ** Grerrymandering."
g» Representatives at large.
A. The advantage of the district system.
t. The British system and its advantage.
5. The assembling of Congress : —
a. The time of assembling.
h. The interval between a member's election and the begin-
ning of his service.
282 THE FEDERAL UNION.
c. The disadyantage of this long intenraL
6. What is the duty of each house in respect (1) to its member-
ship, (2) its rules, (3) its records, and (4) its adjourn-
ment.
7. Give an account (1) of the paj of a congressman, (2) of
his freedom from arrest, (3) of his responsibility for
words spoken in debate, and (4) of his right to hold
other ofQce.
8. Tell (1) who preside in Congress, (2) how the name speaker
originated, (3) what the speaker's duties are, and (4)
what his power in the government is.
9. Impeachment of public officers : —
a. Old English usage.
b. The conduct of an impeachment trial in England.
c. The conduct of an impeachment trial in the United States.
d. The penalty in case of conviction.
la The provisions of the Constitution for legislation : —
a. Bills for raising revenue.
5. How a bill becomes a law.
c. The president's veto power.
d. Passage of a bill over the president's veto.
e. The " pocket veto."
/I The veto power in England.
g. The value of the veto power.
§ 3. ITie Federal £!xecutive.
In signing or vetoing bills passed by Congress the
president shares in legislation, and is virtually a third
house. In his other capacities he is the chief executive
officer of the Federal Union; and inasmuch as he
appoints the other great executive officers, he is really
the head of the executive department, not — like the
governor of a state — a mere member of it. His title
of " President " is probably an inheritance from the
presidents of the Continental Cons^ress. In
"Preai- jranklm s plan of union, m 1754, the head
dent." I. 1 •
of the executive department was called
^' G-ovemor General,'' but that title had an unpleasant
THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE. 233
Boniiid to American ears. Our great-grandf alihers liked
^^ president " better, somewhat as the Romans, in the
eighth century of their city, preferred ^^ imperator "
to ^^rex." Then, as it served to distinguish widely
between the head of the Union and the heads of the
states, it soon fell into disuse in the state governments,
and thus ^^ president " has come to be a much grander
title than ^^ governor," just as ^^ emperor " has come
to be a grander title than ^^ king." ^
There was no question which perplexed the
Federal Convention more than the question as to the
best method .of electing the president. There was a
general distrust of popular election for an office so
exalted. At one time the Convention decided to have
the president elected by Congress, but there was a
grave objection to this ; it would be likely to destroy
his independence, and make him the tool of Congress.
Finally the device of an electoral college was The electoral
adopted. Each state is entitled to a number <*®"«8®-
of electors equal to the number of its representatives
in Congress, plus two, the number of its senators.
Thus to-day Delaware, with 1 representative, has 8
electors ; Missouri, with 14 representatives, has 16
electors ; New York, with 34 representatives, has 36
electors. No federal senator or representative, or any
person holding civil office imder the United States,
can serve as an elector. Each state may appoint or
choose its electors in such manner as it sees fit ; at
first they were more often than otherwise chosen by
the legislatures, now they are always elected by the
people. The day of election must be the same in all
the states.
By an act of Congress passed in 1792 it is required
to be within 34 days preceding the first Wednesday in
^ See above p. 169.
284 THE FEDERAL UNION.
December. A subsequent act in 1845 appointed the
Tuesday following the first Monday in November as
election day.
By the act of 1792 the electors chosen in each state
are required to assemble on the first Wednesday in
December at some place in the state which is desig-
nated by the legislature. Before this date the gov-
emor of the state must cause a certified list of the
names of the electors to be made out in triplicate and
delivered to the electors. Having met together they
vote for president and vice-president, make oat a
sealed certificate of their vote in triplicate, and attach
to each copy a copy of the certified list of their names.
One copy must be delivered by a messenger to the
president of the Senate at the federal capital before
the first Wednesday in January ; the second is sent
to the same ofiBcer through the mail ; the third is to
be deposited with the federal judge of the district in
which the electors meet. If by the first Wednesday
in January the certificate has not been received at
the federal capital, the secretary of state is to send a
messenger to the district judge and obtain the copy
deposited with him. The interval of a month was
allowed to get the returns in, for those were not the
days of railroad and telegraph. The messengers were
allowed twenty-five cents a mile, and were subject to
a fine of a thousand dollars for neglect of duty. On
the second Wednesday in February, Congress is re-
quired to be in session, and the votes received are
counted and the result declared.^
At first the electoral votes did not state whether
the candidates named in them were candidates for the
presidency or for the vice-presidency. Each elector
simply wrote down two names, only one of which
could be the name of a citizen of his own state. In
^ See note on p. 292.
THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE. 236
the official count the candidate who had the largest
number of votes, provided they were a majority of
the whole number, was declared president, and the
candidate who had the next to tihe largest number
was declared vice-president. The natural result of
tjiis was seen in the first contested election in 1796,
which made Adams president, and his antagonist vice-
president. In the next election in 1800 it gave to
Jefferson and his colleague Burr exactly the same
number of votes. In such a case the House of £ep-
resentatives must elect, and such intrigues followed
for the purpose of defeating Jefferson that the country
was brought to the verge of civil war. It thus became
necessary to change the method. By the twelfth amend-
ment to the constitution, declared in force
in 1804, the present method was adopted, amendment
(1804).
The electors make separate ballots for presi-
dent and for vice-president. In the official count the
votes for president are first inspected. If no candi-
date has a majority, then the House of Representatives
must immediately choose the president from the three
names highest on the list. In this choice the house
votes by states, each state having one vote ; a quorum
for this purpose must consist of at least one member
from two thirds of the states, and a majority of all
the states is necessary for a choice. Then if no can-
didate for the vice-presidency has a majority, the
Senate makes its choice from the two names highest
on the list ; a quorum for the purpose consists of two
thirds of the whole number of senators, and a majority
of the whole number is necessary to a choice. Since
this amendment was made there has been one instance
of an election of the president by the House of Rep-
resentatives, — that of John Quincy Adams in 1825 ;
and there has been one instance of an election of the
286 TEE FEDERAL UNION.
vice-president by the Senate, — that of Richard Men-
tor Johnson in 1837.
One serious difficulty was not yet foreseen and pro-
vided for, — that of deciding between two conflicting
returns sent in by two hostile sets of electors in the
same state, each list being certified by one of two
rival governors claiming authority in the same state.
Such a case occurred in 1877, when Florida, Louisiana,
and South Carolina were the scene of struggles be-
tween rival governments. Ballots for Tilden and bal-
lots for Hayes were sent in at the same time from
these states, and in the absence of any recognized
^ , ^ , means of determining which ballots to
Theeleotoral . . r^ i . i
(lOTH "^^ count, the two parties m Congress submitted
the result to arbitration. An ^^ electoral
commission '' was created for the occasion, composed
of five senators, five representatives, and five judges
of the supreme court; and this body decided what
votes were to be counted. It was a clumsy expedient,
but infinitely preferable to civil war. The question
of conflicting returns has at length been set at rest by
the act of 1887, which provides that no electoral votes
can be rejected in counting except by the concurrent
action of the two houses of Congress.
The devolution of the presidential office in case of
the president's death has also been made the subject
of legislative change and amendment. The office of
vice-president was created chiefly for the purpose of
meeting such an emergency. Upon the accession of
the vice-president to the presidency, the Senate would
proceed to elect its own president pro tempore. An
act of 1791 provided that in case of the death, resigna-
Presidentiai *^^^9 ^^ disability of both president and vice-
succession. president, the succession should devolve first
upon the president pro tempore of the Senate and
THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE, 287
then upon the speaker of the House of Bepresenta-
tives, until the disability should be removed or a new
election be held. But supposing a newly elected
president to die and be succeeded by the vice-presi-
dent before the assembling of the newly elected Con-
gress ; then there would be no president pro tempore
of the Senate and no speaker of the House of Bepre-
sentatives, and thus the death of one person might
cause the presidency to lapse. Moreover the presid-
ing officers of the two houses of Congress might be
members of the party defeated in the last presidential
election ; indeed, this is often the case. Sound policy
and fair dealing require that a victorious party shall
not be turned out because of the death of the presi-
dent and vice-president. Accordingly an act of 1886
provided that in such an event the succession should
devolve upon the members of the cabinet in the follow-
ing order : secretary of state, secretary of the treasury,
secretary of war, attorney-general, postmaster-general,
secretary of the navy, secretary of the interior. This
woull^em to be aZple provSon against a lapse.
To return to the electoral college : it was devised
as a safeguard against popular excitement. It was
supposed that the electors in their December meeting
would calmly discuss the merits of the ablest men in
the country and make an intelligent selection for the
presidency. The electors were to use their ^_,^ ,
^ ** , , Original pur-
own judgment, and it was not necessary that ppee of the
« 1 1 1 . "in «l«ctoraloolr
all the electors chosen m one state should lege not fui-
, filled.
vote for the same candidate. The people on
election day were not supposed to be voting for a
president but for presidential electors. This theory
was never realized. The two elections of Washington,
in 1788 and 1792, were unanimous. In the second
contested election, that of 1800, the electors simply
288 THE FEDERAL UNION.
registered the result of the popular vote, and it has
been so ever since. Immediately after the popular
election, a whole month before the meeting of the
electoral college, we know who is to be the next presi-
dent. There is no law to prevent an elector from vot-
ing for a different pair of candidates from those at the
head of the party ticket, but the custom has become
as binding as a statute. The elector is chosen to vote
for specified candidates, and he must do so.
On the other hand, it was not until long after 1800
that all the electoral votes of the same state were
necessarily given to the same pair of candidates. It
Eiecton was customary in many states to choose the
^^n m electors by districts. A state entitled to ten
^^^^. electors would choose eight of them in its
onTgeoOT^ eight congressional districts, and there were
'^^ various ways of choosing the other two. In
some of the districts one party would have a majority,
in others the other, and so the electoral vote of the
state would be divided between two pairs of can-
didates. After 1830 it became customary to choose
the electors upon a general ticket, and thus the elec-
toral vote became solid in each state.^
This system, of course, increases the chances of
electing presidents who have received a minority of
Minority *^® popular votc. A Candidate may carry
preddenta. qj^^ ^tsA^ by au immense majority and thus
gain 6 or 8 electoral votes; he may come within a
few hundred of carrying another state and thus lose
36 electoral votes. Or a small third party may divert
some thousands of votes from the principal candidate
^ In 1860 the vote of New Jersey was divided between Lin-
coln and Douglas, but that was because the names of three of
the seven Douglas electors were upon ^wo different tickets, and
thus got a majority of votes while the other four fell short. In
1892 the state of Michigan chose its electors by districts.
THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE. 289
without affecting the electoral vote of the state. Since
Washington's second term we have had twenty-five
contested elections,^ and in nine of these the elected
president has failed to receive a majority of the popu-
lar vote ; Adams in 1824 (elected by the House of fiep-
resentatives), Polk in 1844, Taylor in 1848, Buchanan
in 1856, Lincoln in 1860, Hayes in 1876, Garfield in
1880, Cleveland in 1884, Harrison in 1888. This
has suggested more or less vague speculation as to the
advisableness of changing the method of electing the
president. It has been suggested that it would be
well to abolish the electoral college, and resort to a
direct popular vote, without reference to state lines.
Such a method would be open to one serious objec-
tion. In a closely contested election on the present
method the result may remain doubtful for three or
four days, while a narrow majority of a few Advantages
hundred votes in some great state is being ^^^i
ascertained by careful coimting. It was so ^"^^"^
in 1884. This period of doubt is sure to be a period
of intense and dangerous excitement. In an election
without reference to states, the result would more
often be doubtful, and it would be sometimes neces-
sary to count every vote in every little out-of-the-way
comer of the country before the question could be
settled. The occasions for dispute would be multi-
plied a hundred fold, with most demoralizing effect.
Our present method is doubtless clumsy, but the
solidity of the electoral colleges is a safeguard, and as
all parties understand the system it is in the long run
as fair for one as for another.
The Constitution says nothing about the method of
nominating candidates for the presidency, neither has
^ All have been contested, except Monroe's reflection in 1820^
when there was no opposing candidate.
240 THE FEDERAL UNION.
it been made the sabject of l^islation. It has been
determined by oonTraiience. It was not necessary to
nominate Washington, and the candidacies of Adams
and Jefferson were also matters of general under-
standing. In 1800 the Bepublican and Federalist
members of Congress respectively held secret meet-
ings or caucuses, chiefly for the purpose of
ii^eonsn^ agreeing upon candidates for the vice-presi-
^^l^^go^ dency and making some plans for the can-
^y vass. It became customary to nominate
candidates in such congressional caucuses, but there
was much hostile comment upon the system as un-
democratic Sometimes the ^^ favourite son " of a state
was nominated by the l^islature, but as the means
of travel improved, the nominating convention came
to be preferred. In 1824 there were four candidates
for the presidency, — Adams, Jackson, Clay, and
Crawford. Adams was nominated by the legislatures
of most of the New England states ; Clay by the legis-
lature of Kentucky, followed by the legislatures of
Missouri, Ohio, Illinois, and Louisiana ; Crawford by
the legislature of Virginia ; and Jackson by a mass
convention of the people of Blount County in Tennes-
see, followed by local conventions in many other states.
The congressional caucus met and nominated Crawford,
but this indorsement did not help him,^ and this method
was no longer tried. In 1832 for the first time the
candidates were all nominated In national conventions.
These conventions, as fully developed, are represen-
Komimiting tative bodics chosen for the specific purpose
oonTontions. q£ nominating candidates and making those
declarations of principle and policy known as ^^ plat-
forms." Each state is allowed twice as many dele-
gates as it has electoral votes. ^' The delegates are
^ Stanwoody History of Presidential Elections, pp. 80-83.
THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE. 241
chosen by local conventions in their several states,
viz., two for each congressional district by the party
convention of that district, and four for the whole
state (called delegates-at-large) by the state conven-
tion. As each convention is composed of delegates
from primaries, it is the composition of the primaries
which determines that of the local conventions, and it
is the composition of the local conventions which de-
termines that of the national." ^ The ^^ primary " is
the smallest nominating convention. It stands in
somewhat the same relation to the national conven-
tion as the relation of a township or ward to ^^ i<p^
the whole United States. A primary is a ™*^''
little caucus of all the voters of one pariy who live
within the bounds of the township or ward. It difiEers
in composition from the town-meeting in that all its
members belong to one party. It has two duties : one
is to nominate candidates for the local ofiBces of the
township or ward ; the other is to choose delegates to
the county or district convention. The primary, as
its name indicates, is a primary and not a represents-
tive assembly. The party voters in a township or
ward are usually not too numerous to meet together,
and all ought to attend such meetings, though in prac-
tice too many people stay away. By the representa-
tive system, through various grades of convention, the
wishes and character of these countless little primaries
are at length expressed in the wishes and character of
the national party convention, and candidates for the
presidency and vice-presidency are nominated.
The qualifications for the two ofiBces are of course
the same. Foreign-bom citizens are not ^^^
eli&:ible, thous^h this restriction did not in- wom for the
elude such as were citizens of the United
^ Bryoe, American ComnumwecM, voL ii. p. 145 ; see also p. 62.
242 THE FEDERAL UNION.
States at the time when the Constitution was adopted.
The candidate must have reached the age of thirty-
five, and must have been fourteen years a resident of
the United States.
The president's term of office is four years. The
Constitution says nothing about his reelection, and
The term of there is no written law to prevent his being
""*^ reelected a dozen times. But .Washington,
after serving two terms, refused to accept the office a
third time. Jefferson in 1808 was "earnestly be-
sought by many and influential bodies of citizens to
become a candidate for a third term ; " ^ and had he
consented there is scarcely a doubt that he would have
been elected. His refusal established a custom which
has never been infringed, though there were persons
in 1876 and again in 1880 who wished to secure a
third term for Grant.
The president is commander-in-chief of the military
^ and naval forces of the United States, and
Powers and
duties of the of the militia of the several states when
President.
actually engaged in the service of the United
States ; and he has the royal prerogative of granting
reprieves and pardons for offences against the United
States, except in cases of impeachment.^
He can make treaties with foreign powers, but they
must be confirmed by a two thirds vote of the Senate.
He appoints ministers to foreign countries, consuls,
and the greater federal officers, such as the heads of
executive departments and judges of the Supreme
Court, and all these appointments are subject to con-
firmation by the Senate. He also appoints a vast
number of inferior officers, such as postmasters and
revenue collectors, without the participation of the
Senate. When vacancies occur during the recess of
1 Morse's Jeffmon^ p. 318. ' See above, p. 229.
TBS FEDERAL EXECUTIVE.. 248
the Senate, he may M them by granting commissions
to expire a^ Ae Ji of the next Ssion He commis-
sions all federal ofiBcers. He receives foreign min-
isters. He may summon either or both houses of
Congress to an extra session, and if the two houses
disagree with regard to the time of adjournment, he
may adjourn them to such time as he thinks best, but
of course not beyond the day fixed for the beginning
of the next regular session.
The president mu^t from time to time make a report
to Congress on the state of affairs in the country and
suggest such a line of policy or such special measures
as may seem good to him. This report has ^^
taken the form of an annual written mes- dent's mes-
sage. Washington and Adams began their
administrations by addressing Congress in a speech,
to which Congress replied ; but it suited the opposite
party to discover in this an imitation of the British
practice of opening Parliament with a speech from
the sovereign. It was accordingly stigmatized as
^^monarchical," and Jefferson (though without for-
mally alleging any such reason) set the example,
which has been followed ever since, of addressing
Congress in a written message.^ Besides this annual
message, the president may at any time send in a
special message relating to matters which in his opin-
ion reqidre immediate attention.
The effectiveness of a president's message depends
of course on the character of the president and the
general features of the political situation. That
separation between the executive and legislative de-
partments, which is one of the most distinctive fea-
tures of civil government in the United States, tends
to prevent the development of leadership. An Eng-
^ Jefferson, moreover, was a powerful writer and a poor speaker.
244 THE FEDERAL UNION.
lish prime minister's policy, so long as he remains in
office, must be that of the House of Commons ; power
and responsibility are concentrated. An able presi-
dent may virtually direct the policy of his party in
Congress, but he often has a majority against him in
one house and sometimes in both at once. Thus in
dividing power we divide and weaken responsibility.
To this point I have already alluded as illustrated in
our state governments.
The Constitution made no specific provisions for
the creation of executive departments, but left the
Executive matter to Congress. At the beginning of
departmenta. 'VVashiugtou's administration three secreta-
ryships were created, — those of state, treasury, and
war ; and an attorney-general was appointed. [There
are now nine executive departments, which were cre-
ated as follows : Department of State, 1789 ; War De-
partment, 1789; Department of the Treasury, 1789;
Post Office Department, 1794; Navy Department,
1798 ; Interior Department, 1849 ; Department of
Justice, 1870 ; Department of Agriculture, 1889 ; De-
partment of Commerce and Labor, 1903.] The heads
of these departments are the president's advisers, but
they have as a body no recognized legal existence or
authority. They hold their meetings in a room at the
president's executive mansion, the White House, but
no record is kept of their proceedings and the presi-
dent is not bound to heed their advice. This body
has always been called the ^^ Cabinet," after the Eng-
lish usage. It is like the English cabinet in being
«-K|««i. composed of heads of executive departments
and in being, as a body, unknown to the
law; in other respects the difference is very great.
The English cabinet is the executive committee of
the House of Commons, and exercises a guiding and
THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE. 245
directing influence upon legislation. The position of
the president is not at all like that of the prime min-
ister ; it is more like that of the English sovereign,
though the latter has not nearly so much power as the
president ; and the American cabinet in some respects
resembles the English privy council, though it cannot
make ordinances.
The secretary of state ranks first among our cab-
inet officers. He is often called our prime minister
or ^^ premier," but there could not be a more absurd
use of language. In order to make an American per-
sonage corresponding to the English prime minister
we must first go to the House of Bepresentatives, take
its committee of ways and means and its
committee on appropriations, and unite them tary of
into one committee of finance ; then we must
take the chairman of this conmiittee, give him the
power of dissolving the House and ordering a new
election, and make him master of all the executive
departments, while at the same time we strip from the
president all real control over the administration.
This exalted finance-chairman would be much like the
First Lord of the Treasury, commonly called the
prime minister. This illustration shows how wide the
divergence has become between our system and that
of Great Britain.
Our secretary of state is our minister of foreign
affairs, and is the only officer who is authorized to
communicate with other governments in the name of
the president. He is at the head of the diplomatic
and consular service, issuing the instructions to our
ministers abroad, and he takes a leading part in the
negotiation of treaties. To these ministerial duties
he adds some that are more characteristic of his title
of secretary. He keeps the national archives, and
246 THE FEDERAL UNION.
superintends the publication of laws, treaties, and
proclamations ; and he is the keeper of the great seal
of the United States.
Our foreign relations are cared for in foreign coun-
tries by two distinct classes of officials : ministers and
consuls. The former represent the United States gov-
emment in a diplomatic capacity; the latter have
nothing to do with diplomacy or politics, but look
after our commercial interests in foreign
aiJoonsoiar couutries. Cousuls cxcrcise a protective
care over seamen, and perform various duties
for Americans abroad. They can take testimony and
administer estates. In some non-Christian countries,
such as China, Japan, and Turkey, they have juris-
diction over criminal cases in which Americans are
concerned. Formerly our ministers abroad were of only
three grades : (1) " envoys extraordinary and min-
isters plenipotentiary ; " (2) " ministers resident ; "
(3) charges d'affaires. The first two are accredited
by the president to the head of government of the
countries to which they are sent ; the third are accred-
ited by the secretary of state to the minister of foreign
affairs in the countries to which they are sent. We
still retain these grades, which correspond to the
lower grades of the diplomatic service in European
countries. Until lately we had no highest grade
answering to that of " ambassador,^' perhaps because
when our diplomatic service was organized the
United States did not yet rank among firsi-rate
powers, and could not expect to receive ambassadors.
Great powers, like France and Germany, send ambas-
sadors to each other, and envoys to inferior powers,
like Denmark or Greece or Guatemala. When we
send envoys to the great powers, we rank ourselves
along with inferior powers ; and diplomatic etiquette
as a rule obliges the great powers to send to us the
THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE. 247
same grade of minister that we send to them. There
were found to be some practical inconveniences about
this, so that in 1892 tJie highest grade was adopted
and our ministers to Great Britain and France were
made ambassadors.
The cabinet officer second in rank and in some
respects first in importance is the secretary of the treas-
ury. He conducts the financial business of the gov-
ernment, superintends the collection of reve-
nue, and gives warrants for the payment of taiy of the
moneys from the treasury. He also superin-
tends the coinage, the national banks, the custom-
houses, the coast-survey and lighthouse system, the
marine hospitals, and life-saving service.^ He sends
reports to Congress, and suggests such measures as
3eem good to him. Since the Civil War his most
weighty business has been the management of the
national debt. He is aided by two assistant secreta-
ries, six auditors, a register, a comptroller, a solicitor,
a director of the mint, commissioner of internal rev-
enue, chiefs of the bureau of statistics and bureau of
engraving and printing, etc. The business of the
treasury department is enormous, and no part of our
government has been more faithfully administered.
Since 1789 the treasury has disbursed more than seven
billions of dollars without one serious defalcation.
No man directly interested in trade oir commerce can
be appointed secretary of the treasury, and the de-
partment has almost always been managed by '' men
of small incomes bred either to politics or the legal
profession." ^
^ Many of these details concerning the ezecative departments
are admirably summarizedy and with more fullness than com-
ports with the design of the present work, in Thorpe's Govern^
ment of (he People of the United States, pp. 18a-193.
* Schouler, Hist, of the U. 5., vol. i. p. 95.
248 THE FEDERAL UNION.
[The war and navy departments have general direc-
tion of the army and navy, their equipment, organiza-
tion and movements. The business of the de-
nary de- partments is divided between various bureaus
under competent officials who attend to all
details of military and naval affairs and strive to pro-
mote in every way the efficiency of the service. The
war department has charge of the military academy
at West Point, and the navy department controls the
Annapolis academy and the naval observatory at
Washington. The business of both departments has
increased enormously in volume and scope since the
Spanish War and the acquisition of new dependen-
cies.
No one of the executive departments contributes
more to the comfort and convenience of the people
than that of the post office. With its net-
office de- work of postal routes binding together the
entire country, its thousands of post offices,
and its army of officials engaged in collecting and
distributing letters, papers, and periodicals, it is indis-
pensable to the business interests of the people, and a
civilizing influence of inestimable value.
So huge an undertaking demands rare executive
management, an adequate force of assistants, and a
highly organized system to attend properly to the
numerous details. At its head is the postmaster-gen-
eral. There are also four assistant postmasters-gen-
eral, each having charge of particular branches of the
service. For instance, the second assistant attends to
the transportation of the mails, and the fourth has
charge of the appointment of all postmasters whose
salaries are less than $1000. Larger salaried offices
are filled by the President with the consent of the
Senate. Other subordinates, such as mail carriers a&d
THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE. 249
postal clerks, are mostly appointed by the Civil Ser-
vice Commission created by the Act of 1883, see
p, 278.]
The department of the interior conducts a vast and
miscellaneous business, as is shown by the designations
of its six bureaus, which deal with public
lands, Indian affairs, pensions, patents, edu- ment of the
cation (chiefly in the way of gathering statis-
tics and reporting upon school affairs), and transcon-
tinental railroads.
[The department of justice was organized as a sep-
arate department in 1870, although the attorney-'
general, first appointed in Washington's
administration, has always had a seat in the mentofjiu-
President's cabinet.] He is the President's
legal adviser and represents the United States in all
lawsuits to which the United States is a party. He
is aided by a solicitor-general and other subordinate
officers.
[In 1889, the bureau of agriculture was femoved
from the department of the interior and organized as
a separate department. Its chief function
is to help the agricultural interests of the mentof*^^^
J r 1 • xi_ • j.'x» agriculture.
country by placing them upon a scientmc
basis. It sends to the farmers accurate information
as to new and promising varieties of stock, grain,
fruits, and vegetables. It acquaints them with the
results of the experimental investigation of soils and
of the scientific study of the insect enemies of their
crops, and of the diseases of plants and animals. Be-
sides the diffusing of such useful information, it dis-
tributes quantities of seeds. It also inspects cattle
and meats which are to be exported to foreign coun-
tries. The weather bureau, which forecasts the ap-
proach of storms and sends out crop bulletins, and
260 THE FEDERAL UNION.
the bureau of forestry, which is devoted to the much-
needed work of saving our forests, are connected with
this department.
The most recently organized executive department
is that of commerce and labor. To it have been as-
xiiedeMTt- sigiied many duties of a miscellaneous char-
SSJ^ acter which were formerly attended to by
andiAbor. ^^ other departments. The supervision and
inspection of light-houses, once the duty of the treas-
ury department, and the census bureau, formerly
connected with the department of the interior, are in-
stances in point. Besides these,* there is a bureau of
manufactures, which is designed to promote the manu-
facturing interests of the country both by the diffusion
of useful information and by the extension of foreign
and domestic markets ; a bureau of labor, which makes
a special study of labor conditions, and a bureau of
corporations, which may investigate and make public
the organization and management of corporations do-
ing intel*state business.]
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. Speak (1) of the president's share in legislation, (2) of his
relation to the executive department, and (3} of the origin
of his title.
2. The electoral college : —
a. The method of electing the president a perplexing qnes-
tion.
h. The constitution of the electoral college, with illustrationa
c. Qualifications for serving as an elector.
d. The method of choosing electors.
e. The time of choosing electors.
f. When and where the electors vote.
g. The number and disposition of the certificates of their
h. The declaration of the result.
3. What was the method of voting in the electoral college be-
fore 1804? Illustrate the working of this method in
1796 and 1800.
THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE. 261
4. The amendment of 1804 : —
a. The ballots of the electors.
h. The duty of the House if no candidate for the presidency
receives a majority of the electoral votes.
c. The duty of the Senate if no candidate for the vice-pres-
idency receives a majority of the electoral votes.
d. Illustrations of the working of this amendment in 1825
and 1837.
5* The electoral conmiission of 1877 :— -
a, A difficulty not foreseen.
h. Conflicting returns in 1877.
c. The plan of arbitration adopted.
6. The presidential succession : —
a. The office of vice-president.
h. The act of 1791. »
c. The possibility of a lapse of the presidency.
d. The possibility of an unfair political overthrow.
e. The act of 1886.
7« Compare the original purpose of the electoral college with
the fulfillment of that purpose.
8« Explain the transition from a divided electoral vote in a state
to a solid electoral vote.
9. Show how a minority of the people may elect a president.
Who have been elected by minorities ?
10. What is the advantage of the electoral system over a direct
popular vote ?
H. Methods of nominating candidates for the presidency and
vice-presidency before 1832 : —
a. The absence of constitutional and legislative requirements.
6. Presidents not nominated.
c. Nominations by congressional caucuses.
d. Nominations by state legislatures.
e. Nominations by local conventions.
12. Nominations by national conventions in 1832 and since : —
a. The nature of a national convention.
(• The platform.
(•The number of delegates frofn a state, and their elec-
tion.
<2<The relation of the '* primaries" to distrioti state, and
national conventions,
e. The nature of the primary.
/• Its two duties.
252 THE FEDERAL UNION.
g. The duty of the voter to attend the primaries.
[3. The presidency : —
a. Qualifications for the office.
h. The term of office.
14. Powers and duties of the president : —
a. As a commander-in-chief.
h. In respect to reprieves and pardons.
c. In respect to treaties with foreign powers.
d. In respect to the appointment of federal officers.
e. In respect to sunmioning and adjourning Congress.
f. In respect to reporting the state of affairs in the countiy
to Congress.
15. The president's message : —
a. The course of Washington and Adama.
h. The example of Jefferson.
c. The effectiveness of the message.
d. Power and responsibility in the English system.
e. Power and responsibility in the American system.
16. Executive departments : —
a. The departments under Washington.
h. Later additions to the departments.
c. The " Cabinet."
d. The resemblance between the English cabinet and our
own.
e. The difference between the English cabinet ai^d our own.
17. The secretary of state : —
a. Is he a prime minister ?
h. What would be necessary to make an American personage
correspond to an English prime minister ?
c. What are the ministerial duties of the secretary of state ?
d. What other duties has he more characteristic of his title ?
18. Our diplomatic and consular service : —
a. The distinction between ministers and consuls.
5. Three g^rades of ministers.
c. The persons to whom the three grades are accredited.
d. The grade of ambassador.
19. The secretary of the treasury: —
a. His rank and importance.
h. His various duties.
c. His chief assistants.
d. The administration of the treasury department since 1789.
20. The duties of the remaining cabinet officers : —
THE NATION AND THE STATES. 268
a. Of the secretary of war.
h. Of the secretary of the navy.
c. Of the secretary of the mterior.
d. Of the postmaster-general.
e. Of the attorney-general.
/. Of the secretary of agriculture.
g. Of the secretary of commerce.
§ 4. The Nation and the States,
We have left our Federal Convention sitting a good
while at Philadelphia, while we have thus undertaken
to give a coherent account of our national executive
organization, which has in great part grown up since
1789 with the growth of the nation. Observe how
wisely the Constitution confines itself to a clear sketch
of fundamentals, and leaves as much as possible to
be developed by circumstances. In this feature lies
partly the flexible strength, the adaptableness, of our
Federal Constitution. That strength lies partly also
in the excellent partition of powers between the fed-
eral government and the several states.
We have already remarked upon the vastness of
the functions retained by the states. At the same
time the powers granted to Congress have proved
su£5icient to bind the states together into a union that
is more than a mere confederation. From
-irrrrn -irTofx ' i tt • -i o Difference
1776 to 1789 the United States were a con- betweenoon.
federation ; after 1789 it was sl federal na- and federal
UXliOD.
tion. The passage from plural to smgular
was accomplished, although it took some people a
good while to realize the fact. The German language
has a neat way of distinguishing between a loose con-
federation and a federal union. It calls the former a
Staatenbund and the latter a Bundesstaat. So in
264 THE FEDERAL UNION.
English, if we liked, we might call the confederation
a Band-qf" States and the federal union a Sanded"
State, There are two points especially in our consti-
tution which transformed our country from a Band-
of-States into a Banded-State.
The first was the creation of a federal House of
Representatives, [the second was the creation of a fed-
eral judiciary (see p. 260)]. The former secured for
Congress the power ^' to lay and collect taxes, duties,
imposts, and excises, to pay the debts and provide for
the common welfare of the United States."
Brantedto Other powors are naturally attached to this,
— such as the power to borrow motiey on
the credit of the United States ; to regulate foreign
and domestic commerce ; to coin money and fix the
standard of weights and measures ; to provide for the
punishment of counterfeiters ; to establish post-offices
and post-roads; to issue copyrights and patents; to
^'define and punish felonies committed on the high
seas, and offences against the law of nations ; to de-
clare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and
make rules concerning captures on land and water ; "
to raise and support an army and navy, and to make
rules for the regulation of the land and naval forces ;
to provide for calling out the militia to suppress insur-
rections and repel invasions, and to govern this militia
while actually employed in the service of the United
States. The several states, however, train their own
militia and appoint the officers. Congress may also
establish a uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform
laws on the subject of bankruptcies. It also exercises
exclusive control over the District of Colutnbia, as the
seat of the national government, and over forts, mag-
azines, ai*senals, dockyards, and other needful build-
ings, which it erects within the several states upon
THE NATION AND THE STATES. 266
land purchased for such purposes with the consent of
the state legislature.
Congress is also empowered ^^to make all laws
which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into
execution the foregoing powers and all other powers
vested by this Constitution in the govern- The«*Ehwtio
ment of the United States, or in any depart- ^^"^"
ment or office thereof." This may be called the
Elastic Clause of the Constitution ; it has undergone
a good deal of stretching for one purpose and another,
and, as we shall presently see, it was a profound dis-
agreement in the interpretation of this clause that
after 1789 divided the American people into two great
political parties.
The national aiithoriiy of Congress is further
sharply defined by the express denial of sundry pow-
ers to the several states. These we have al- ^
Powers (to-
reador enumerated.^ There was an especial niedtothe
reason for prohibiting the states from issu-
ing bills of credit, or making anything but gold and
silver coin a tender in payment of debts. During the
years 1786 and 1786 a paper money craze ran through
the country ; most of the states issued paper notes,
and passed laws obliging their citizens to receive them
in payment of debts. Now a paper doUar is not
money, it is only the government's promise to pay a
dollar. As long as you can send it to the treasury
and get a gold doUar in exchange, it is worth a doUar.
It is this exchangeableness that makes it paper cox^
worth a dollar. When government makes "*°^*
the paper dollar note a '' legal tender," i. 6., when it
refuses to give you the gold dollar and makes you
take its note instead, the note soon ceases to be worth
a dollar. Tou would rather have the gold than the
^ See above, p. 182.
256 THE FEDERAL UNION.
note, for the mere i^i that government refuses to give
the gold shows that it is in financial difficulties. So
the note's value is sure to fall, and if the government
is in serious difficulty, it falls very far, and as it falls
it takes more of it to buy things. Prices go up. There
was a time (1864) during our Civil War when a pa-
per dollar was worth only forty cents and a barrel of
flour cost $23. But that was nothing to the year
1780, when the paper dollar issued by the Continental
Congress was worth only a mill, and flour was sold in '
Boston for $1,576 a barrel I When the different
states tried to make paper money, it made confusion
worse oonf ounded, for the states refused to take each
other's money, and this helped to lower its value. In
some states the value of the paper dollar fell in less
than a year to twelve or fifteen cents. At such times
there is always great demoralization and suffering,
especially among the poorer people ; and with all the
experience of the past, to teach us, it may now be held
to be little less than a criminal act for a government,
under any circumstauces, to make its paper notes a
legal tender. The excuse for the Continental Con-
gress was that it was not completely a government
and seemed to have no alternative, but there is no
doubt that the paper currency damaged the country
much more than the arms of the enemy by land or
sea. The feeling was so strong about it in the
Federal Convention that the prohibition came near
being extended to the national government, but the
question was unfortunately left undecided.^
Some express prohibitions were laid upon the
national government. Duties may be laid upon im-
ports but not upon exports ; this wise restriction was
^ See my Critical Period of American History^ pp. 168-186,
273-276.
THE NATION AND THE STATES. 267
a special concession to South Carolina, which feared
the effect of an export duty upon rice and ^^^
indi&ro. Duties and excises must be uni- niedtoooo^
form throughout the country, and no com-
mercial preference can be shown to one state over
another ; absolute free trade is the rule between the
states. A census must be taken every ten years in
order to adjust the representation, and no direct tax
can be imposed except according to the census. No
money can be drawn from the treasury except ^^in
consequence of appropriations made by law," and
accounts must be regularly kept and published. The
privilege of the writ of habeas corpus cannot be sus-
pended except ^' when, in case of rebellion or invasion,
the public safety may require it ; " and " no bill of at-
tainder, or ex post facto law," can be passed. A bill
of attainder is a special legislative act by Boisof at.
which a person may be condemned to death, ***^^«'-
or to outlawry and banishment, without the opportu-
nity of defending himself which he would have in a
court of law. " No evidence is necessarily adduced to
support it,"^ and in former times, especially in the
reign of Henry VIII., it was a formidable engine for
perpetrating judicial murders. Bills of attainder long
ago ceased to be employed in England, and the pro-
cess was abolished by statute in 1870.
No title of nobility can be granted by the United
States, and no federal officer can accept a present,
office, or title from a foreign state without the consent
of Congress. "No religious test shall ever be re-
quired as a qualification to any office or public trust
under the United States." Full faith and credit
must be given in each state to the public acts and
records, and to the judicial proceedings of every other
^ Taswell-Langmead, English ConstittOumal Htstory, p. 365.
258 THE FEDERAL UNION.
state; and it is left for Congress to determine the
interoitben- u^a^uer in which such aots and proceedings
^^^ shall be proved or certified. The citizens of
each state are ^^ entitled to all privileges and immuni-
ties of citizens in the several states." There is mutual
extradition of criminals, and, as a concession to the
southern states it was provided that fugitive slaves
should be surrendered to their masters. The United
States guarantees to every state a republican form of
government, it protects each state against invasion;
and on application from the legislature of a state, or
from the executive when the legislature cannot be
convened, it lends a hand in suppressing insurrection.
Amendments to the Constitution may at any time
be proposed in pursuance of a two thirds vote in both
houses of Congress, or by a convention called at the
request of the legislatures of two thirds of the states.
Mode of ^^ amendments are not in force until rati-
^^ fied by three fourths of the states, either
°*®°*^ through their legislatures or through special
conventions, according to the preference of Congress.
This makes it difficult to change the Constitution, as
it ought to be ; but it leaves it possible to introduce
changes that are very obviously desirable. The
Articles of Confederation could not be amended ex-
cept by a unanimous vote of the states, and this made
their amendment almost impossible.
After assuming all debts contracted and engage-
ments made by the United States before its adoption,
the Constitution goes on to declare itself the supreme
law of the land. By it, and by the laws and treaties
made under it, the judges in every istate are bound,
in spite of anything contrary in the constitution or
laws of any state.
THE NATION AND THE STATES. 269
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. In what two features of the Constitation does its strength
largely lie ?
2. DistiDguish between the United States as a confederation
and the United States as a federal union. How does the
German language bring out the distinction ?
3. What was the first important factor in transforming our
country from a Band-of-States to a Banded-State ?
4. The powers granted to Congress : —
a. Over taxes, money, and commerce.
h. Over postal affairs, and the rights of inventors and au«
thors.
c. Over certain crimes.
d. Over war and military matters.
e. Over naturalization and bankruptcy.
/. Over the District of Columbia and other places.
g. The *' elastic clause " and its interpretation.
5. The powers denied to the states : —
a. An enumeration of these powers (p. 175).
h. The prohibition of bills of credit, in particular.
c. The paper money craze of 1785 and 1786.
d. Paper money as a '' legal tender."
e. The depreciation of paper money during the Civil War.
f. The depreciation of the Continental currency in 1780.
g. The demoralization caused by the states making paper
money.
A. The lesson of experience.
6. Prohibitions upon the national government : ^-
a. The imposition of duties and taxes.
h. The payment of money.
c. The writ of habeas corpus,
d. Ex past facto laws.
e. Bills of attainder.
/. Titles and presents.
7. Duties of the states to one another : —
a. In respect to public acts and records, and judicial pro-
ceedings.
b. In respect to the privileges of citizens.
c. In respect to fugitives from justice.
8. What is the duty of the United States to every state in
respect (1) to form of government, (2) invasion, and (3)
insurrection ?
260 THE FEDERAL UNION.
9. Amendments to the Constitution : —
a. Two methods of proposing amendments.
h. Two methods of ratifying amendments.
c. The difficulty of making amendments.
d. Amendment of the Articles of Confederation.
10. What is meant by the Constitution's declaring itself the
supreme law of the land ?
§ 6, 7^e Federal Judiciary.
The creation of a federal judiciary was the second
principal feature in the Constitution, which trans-
formed our country from a loose confederation into a
federal nation, from a Band-qf- States into a Banded-
State. We have seen that the American people were
already somewhat familiar with the method of testing
the constitutionality of a law by getting the
federal judi- matter brought before the courts.^ In the
case of a conflict between state law and
federal law, the only practicable peaceful solution is
that which is reached through a judicial decision.
The federal authority also needs the machinery of
courts in order to enforce its own decrees.
The federal judiciary consists of a supreme court,
circuit courts, and district courts.^ At present the
supreme court consists of a chief justice and eight
associate justices. It holds annual sessions in the city
of Washington, beginning on the second Monday of
Fed Ml October. Each of these nine judges is also
courts and presiding judge of a circuit court. The area
of the United States, not including the terri-
tories, is divided into nine circuits, and in each circuit
the presiding judge is assisted by special circuit judges.
The circuits are divided into districts, seventy-two in all,
and in each of these there is a special district judge.
The districts never cross state lines. Sometimes a
1 See above, p. 202. ^ See the second note on p. 202.
THE FEDERAL JUDICIARY. 261
state is one district^ but populous states with mueh
business are divided into two or even three districts.
^' The circuit courts sit in the several districts of each
circuit successively, and the law requires that each jus-
tice of the supreme court shall sit in each district of
his circuit at least once every two years." ^ District
judges are not confined to their own districts ; they
may upon occasion exchange districts as ministers ex-
change pulpits. A district judge may, if need be, act
as a circuit judge, as a major may command a regi-
ment. All federal judges are appointed by the presi-
dent, with the consent of the Senate, to serve during
good behaviour. Each district has its district attor-
ney^ whose business is to prosecute offenders j.j^. .
a&rainst the federal laws and to conduct civil tomeys and
cases in which the national government is
either plaintiff or defendant. Each district has also
its marshal^ who has the same functions under the
federal court as the sheriff under the state court. The
procedure of the federal court usually follows that of
the courts of the state in which it is sitting.
The federal jurisdiction covers two classes of cases :
(1) those which come before it " because of the nature
of the questions involved: for instance, admiralty and
maritime cases, navigable waters being within the
exclusive jurisdiction of the federal author- ^he federal
ities, and cases arising out of the Constitu- i^^^^^^diction.
tion, laws, or treaties of the United States or out of
conflicting grants made by different states " ; (2) those
which come before it " because of the nature of the
parties to the suit^'^ such as cases affecting the min-
isters of foreign powers or suits between citizens of
different states.
^ See Wilson, The State, p. 554. I have closely followed,
though with much abridgment, the excellent description of our
federal judiciary, pp. 555-^1.
262 THE FEDERAL UNION.
The division of jurisdiction between the upper and
lower federal courts is determined chiefly by the size
and importance of the cases. In cases where a state
or a foreign minister jb a party the supreme court has
original jurisdiction, in other cases it has appellate
jurisdiction, and '' any case which involves the inters
pretation of the Constitution can be taken to the su-
preme court, however small the sum in dispute." If a
law of any state or of the United States is decided
by the supreme court to be in violation of the Consti-
tution, it instantly becomes void and of no effect.
In this supreme exercise of jurisdiction, our highest
federal tribunal is unlike any other tribunal known
to history. The supreme court is the most original of
all American institutions. It is peculiarly American,
and for its exalted character and priceless services it is
an institution of which Americans may well be proud.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. What was the second important factor (see p. 244 for the
first) in transforming our country from a Band-of -States
to a Banded-State ?
2. Why was a federal judiciary deemed necessary ?
3. The organization of the federal judiciary : —
a. The supreme court and its sessions.
h. The circuit courts.
c. The district courts.
d. Exchanges of service.
e. Appointment of judges.
/. The United States district attorney.
g. The United States marshal.
4. The jurisdiction of the federal courts : —
a. Cases because of the nature of the questions inyolred.
h. Cases because of the nature of the parties to the suit.
c. The division of jurisdiction between the upper and the
lower courts.
cf. Wherein the supreme court is the most orijrinal of Amer-
ican institutions.
TERRITORIAL GOVERNMENT. 268
§ 6. Territai*ial Government
The Constitution provided for the admission of new
states to the Union, but it does not allow a state to
be formed within another state. - A state cannot '' be
formed by the junction of two or more states, or parts
of states, without the consent of the legislatures of the
states concerned as well as of the Congress." Shortly
before the making of the Constitution, the United
States had been endowed for the first time
with a public domain. The territory north- westTeni.
west of the Ohio Siver had been claimed, on
the strength of old grants and charters, by Massachu-
setts, Connecticut, New York, and Virginia. In 1777
Maryland refused to sign the Articles of Confedera-
tion until these states should agree to cede their claims
to the United States, and thus in 1784 the federal
government came into possession of a magnificent ter-
ritory, out of which five great states — Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin — have since been
made. While the Federal Convention was sitting at
Philadelphia, the Continental Congress at New York
was doing almost its last and one of its greatest pieces
of work in framing the Ordinance of 1787 for the
organization and government of this newly acquired
territory. The ordinance created a territo-
rial sfovemment with sfovemor and two- mmoeof
chambered legislature, ^urts, magistrates, """
and militia. Complete civil and religious liberty was
guaranteed, negro slavery was prohibited, and pro-
vision was niade for free schools.^
In 1803 the enormous territory known as Louisiana,
comprising everything (except Texas) between the
1 The maimer in which proyision should be made for these
fichools had been pointed out two years before in the land-ordi-
nance of 1785, as heretofore explained. See aboTc, p. 86.
264 THE FEDERAL UNION.
Mississippi River and the crest of the Rocky
tains was purchased from France. [Florida was pair
chased from Spain in 1819. In 1846, that portion d
Oregon Territory lying between the 42d and 4tili
parallels of north latitude was acquired by tnMiQf
with Great Britain. At the close of the Mexican Wiii
two years later, Mexico relinquished to the TJiiilli]
States all claims to territory north of the Rio GrariA
and the Gila rivers. The Gadsden Purchase in Itfp
established the southern boundary of the United Si
other terri- ^ ^* ^^ to-day, and completed the unbi
^it^t stretch of the national domain from Canlih
emmenta. ^^ ^^^ ^^^^Yi to McxicO OU the SOUth. Fk#
tically all of this vast region, from which have bifek
carved more than twenty states and territories,
been at some time under territorial government,
only exceptions have been California and T(
These two for special reasons, the former beoain^^
the unprecedented increase in population following tin
discovery of gold, and the latter as an indepeiulctti
republic, were admitted directly to statehood. Tb
model of provisional governments which were fomiK
was found in the Ordinance of 1787 already refenec
to. In every instance, such a government has beei
regarded as a preparation for statehood in the fedesft
union, although the probationary period has been ii
some cases. New Mexico for example, continued is
more than fifty years. A delegate to the natioM
Congress, with full privileges except the right to TOie
is permitted from each territory.]
Territorial government has generally passed throoi^
three stages: First, there are governors and jadgB
appointed by the President ; then, as population ill
creases, there is added a legislature chosen by Hm
people and empowered to make laws, subject to
TERRITORIAL GOVERNMENT. 266
firmation by Congress ; finally, entire legislative inde-
pendence is granted. The territory is then ripe for
admission to the Union as a state.
[The development of rudimentary states by this
process has been carried on throughout the continental
area of the national domain for more than a century
with gratifying success. The application of known
principles of democratic government to fairly homoge-
neous communities already familiar with Anglo-Saxon
institutions has been comparatively simple. Far more
difficult is the task of governing alien peoples of dif-
ferent temperament and traditions, living under insti-
tutions which have afforded little or no training in
self-government.
The acquisition in the latter part of the nineteenth
century of more remote territory has given New depend-
the United States possessions of the colonial ®°*'*®**
type, and has brought new problems of government
which are still in process of solution.
Alaska was purchased from Russia in 1867, \rith
the understanding that the civil rights and political
status of the native inhabitants should be determined
by Congress, but not until 1884 was a territorial gov-
ernment, and that of the simplest type, provided. It
now has a governor and a district court, but no legis-
lature, being subject to the laws of Oregon.
In August, 1898, the Hawaiian Islands were for-
mally annexed to the United States. Five years be-
fore the reigning queen Liliuokalani had TheHawai-
been deposed and a republic formed. Sev- ^ i»ia»»^-
eral attempts at annexation to the United States were
made, but not until the Spanish War broke out was
the necessary congressional majority in favor of such
a step secured. The islands now constitute the terri-
tory of Hawaii, and have a government not unlike the
266 THE FEDERAL UNION.
prevailing type. No guarantee, however^ of statehood
in the American union has been given, either directly
or by implication.
As another direct result of the Spanish War, the
United States in 1898 became responsible for the tern-
^ porary maintenance of order in Cuba and
for the government of Porto Rico, the Phi-
lippines, and Guam, the largest island of the Ladrone
archipelago. After the withdrawal of Spain from
Cuba, the United States, through whose armed inter-
position the result had been secured, maintained a
military occupation until the Cubans called a consti-
tutional convention and organized a republican form
of government. The control of the island was for-
mally transferred to the new Cuban government. May
20, 1902.
Porto Rico, the Philippines, and Guam were ceded
by Spain to the United States, by the treaty of Paris,
December 10, 1898. A territorial govern-
ment for Porto Rico, differing in several im-
portant particulars from that of former territories, was
established in July, 1901. There is a bicameral legis-
lature, consisting of a House of Delegates, thirty-five
in number, elected by the people, and an upper house
of eleven members, at least five of whom are native
inhabitants of Porto Rico. The upper house also acts
as an executive counciL There is a governor who to-
gether with the upper house is appointed by the Pres-
ident '^ by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate."
The first government established in the Philippines
after their cession from Spain was necessarily a mili-
The Philip- *^ry ^^®« This was superseded by a civil
pines. government, July 4, 1902, which consists at
present of a governor and seven commissioners, four
TERRITORIAL GOVERNMENT 267
Americans and three Filipinos, appointed by the Pres-
ident. By a special act of Congress, dated July 1,
1902, it is provided that all the legislative power now
exercised by this commission shall soon be vested in a
legislatm*e consisting of two houses, — the Philippine
Commission and a popular branch, known as the Phi-
lippine Assembly. There is a supreme court with
seven judges. For purposes of local government the
islands are subdivided into thirty-nine provinces. Pro-
vincial and municipal officers are elected by the peo-
ple.
Guam and one of the Samoan group of islands,
Tutuila, which was acquired by treaty in Guam and
1899, are governed by naval officers dele- ^^'"^
gated for that purpose.
Such departures from the traditional type of terri-
torial government make it clear that it is the policy
of our government to be bound by the precedents es-
tablished in framing the first territorial governments
only so far as they are suited to the peculiar needs of
each particular colony or dependency.
It is too early to forecast the results of our colonial
policy. It brings with it a host of difficult questions,
and for us a new set of ^governmental pro-
blems. Shall we continue to hold our island biemsof gor-
dependencies, however remote, and regard-
less of their aspirations for independence ? Shall we
acquire new ones ? What relation is to exist between
them and the home government ? Are they always to
be dependencies, or shall we permit any of them to
cherish the hope of ultimately becoming states in the
federal union ? These are questions which only the
future can decide.
Whatever mistakes have been made, and about this
there is wide room for difference of opinion, the efforts
268 THE .FEDERAL UNION.
of our government to educate the people of the new
dependencies and to improve the conditions under
which they live are surely to be commended. In Cuba,
during American occupation, yellow fever was stamped
out and a success attained in correcting the insanitary
couditions of Havana and other Cuban cities, which
was an object lesson not only to Cubans but to Ameri-
can municipalities as well. Both in the Philippines
and in Porto Rico, schools have been established, and
every effort is being made to familiarize the people
with Anglo-Saxon customs and to educate them for
local self-government.]
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. What is the constitutional provision for admitting new
states ?
2. What states claimed the territory northwest of the Ohio
river ? On what did they base their claims ?
3. What states have since been made out of this territory ?
4. What was the Ordinance of 1787 ?
5. Give an account of the Louisiana purchase.
6. Give an account of the acquisition of the Oregon territory.
7. Give an account of the acquisition of the remaining Pacific
lands.
8. Account for the fact that neither Texas nor California eyei
had a territorial government.
9. How much of the public domain has been at some time under
territorial government ?
10. Through what three stages has territorial government usually
passed ?
11. What new problems of territorial government have recently
arisen?
12. Give an account of the acquisition and present gOTemment
of Alaska; Hawaii; Porto Rico; the Philippines; Guam.
13. What part did the United States play in securing independ-
ence for Cuba ?
14. What in general is the present policy of the United States
in governing its island dependencies ?
RATIFICATION AND AMENDMENTS. 269
§ 7. Ratification and Amendments.
Thus the work of the Ordinance of 1787 was in
a certain sense supplementary to the work of framing
the Constitution. When the latter instrument was
completed, it was provided that '^ the ratifications of
the conventions of nine states shall be sufficient for
the establishment of this Constitution between the
states so ratifying the same." The Constitution was
then laid before the Continental Congress, which sub-
mitted it to the states. In one state after another,
conventions were held, and at length the Constitution
was ratified. There was much opposition to it, because
it seemed to create a strange and untried form of gov-
ernment which might develop into a tyranny. There
was a fear that the federal power might crush out self-
government in the states. This dread was felt in all
parts of the country. Besides this, there was some sec-
tional opposition between North and South,
and m Virgima there was a party in favour to the
of a separate southern confederacy. But
South Carolina and Georgia were won over by the con-
cessions in the Constitution to slavery, and especially
a provision that the importation of slaves from Africa
should not be prohibited until 1808. By winning
South Carolina and Georgia the formation of a " solid
South " was prevented.
The first states to adopt the Constitution were Dela-
ware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Con-
necticut, with slight opposition, except in Pennsylvania.
Next came Massachusetts, where the convention was
very large, the discussion very long, aud the ^^^^^
action in one sense critical. One chief Bights pro-
source of dissatisfaction was the absence of
a sufficiently explicit Bill of Bights, and to meet this
270 THE FEDERAL UNION.
difficulty, Massachusetts ratified the Constitution, \i\A
proposed amendments, and this course was followed
by other states. Maryland and South Carolina came
next, and New Hampshire made the ninth. Virginia
and New York then ratified by very narrow majorities
and after prolonged discussion. North Carolina did
not come in until 1789, and Ehode Island not until
1790.
In September, 1789, the first ten amendments were
proposed by Congress, and in December, 1791, they
were decLired in force. Their provisions are sunilar
to those of the English Bill of Bights, enacted in
1689,^ but are much more full and explicit
^*" They provide for freedom of speech id of
the press, the free exercise of religion, the
right of the people to assemble and petition Congress
for a redress of grievances, their right to bear arms,
and to be secure against unreasonable searches and
seizures. The quartering of soldiers is guarded, gen-
anteed, and the taking of private property for public
use without due compensation, as well as excessive
fines and bail and the infliction of ^^ cruel and unusual
punishment" are forbidden. Congress is prohibited
from establishing any form of . religion.
Finally, it is declared that " the enumeration of ce^
tain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage
others retained by the people," and that " the powers
not gi*anted to the United States by the Constitution,
nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the
states respectively, or to the people."
^ See above, p. 198. This is further elucidated in Aj^s-
dixes B and D.
A FEW WORDS ABOUT POLITICS. 271
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. What proyision did the Constitution make for its own ratifi-
cation ?
2. What was the general method of ratification in the states ?
3. On what general grounds did the opposition to the Constitu-
tion seem to be based ?
4. By what feature in the Constitution was the support of South
Carolina and Georgia assured ? Why was this support
deemed peculiarly desirable ?
5. What five states ratified the Constitution with little or no
opposition ?
6. What was the objection of Massachusetts and some other
states to the Constitution ? What course, therefore, did
they adopt ?
7. What three states after Massachusetts by their ratification
made the adoption of the Constitution secure ?
8. What four states subsequently gave in their support ?
9. Give an account of the adoption of the first ten amend-
ments.
10. For what do these amendments provide ?
11. What powers are reseryed to the states ?
§ 8. ^ Few Worcls about Politics.
A chief source of the opposition to the new federal
goyemment was the dread of federal taxation. People
who found it hard to pay their town, county, pederai
and state taxes felt that it would be ruinous *****^°^
to have to pay still another kind of tax. In the mere
fact of federal taxation, therefore, they were inclined
to see tyranny. With people in such a mood it was
necessary to proceed cautiously in devising measures
of federal taxation.
This was well understood by our first secretary of
the treasury, Alexander Hamilton, and in the course
of his administration of the treasury he was once
roughly reminded of it. The two methods of federal
taxation adopted at his suggestion were duties on im-
ports and excise on a few domestic produotsi such as
272 THE FEDERAL UNION,
whiskey and tobacco. The excise, being a tax which
people could see and feel, was very unpopu*
lar, and in 1794 the opposition to it in
western Pennsylvania grew into the famous " Whiskey
Insurrection," against which President Washington
thought it prudent to send an army of 16,000 men.
This formidable display of federal power suppressed
the insurrection without bloodshed.
Nowhere was there any such violent opposition to
Hamilton's scheme of custom-house duties on imported
goods. People had always been familiar with such
duties. In the colonial times they had been levied by
the British government without callinfif forth
Tariff.
resistance until Charles Townshend made
them the vehicle of a dangerous attack upon American
self-government.^ After the Declaration of Indepen-
dence, custom-house duties were levied by the state
governments and the proceeds were paid into the
treasuries of the several states. Before 1789, much
trouble had arisen from oppressive tariff-laws enacted
by some of the states against others. By taking away
from the states the power of taxing imports, the new
Constitution removed this source of irritation. It
became possible to lighten the burden of custom-house ,
duties, while by turning the full stream of them into
the federal treasury an abundant national revenue was
secured at once. Thus this part of Hamilton's policy
met with general approval. The tariff has always
been our favourite device for obtaining a national
revenue. During our Civil War, indeed, the national
government resorted extensively to direct taxation,
chiefly in the form of revenue stamps, though it also
put a tax upon billiard-tables, pianos, gold watcheSi
and all sorts of things. But after the return of peace
A See my War of Independence, pp. 58-83 ; and my History of tht
United States, for Schools , pp. 192-203.
A FEW WORDS ABOUT POLITICS. 278
these unusual taxes were one after another discon-
tinued, and since then our national revenue has been
raised, as in Hamilton's time, from duties on imports
aiid excise on a few domestic products, chiefly tobacco
and distilled liquors.^
Hamilton's measures as secretary of the treasury
embodied an entire system of public policy, and the
opposition to them resulted in the formation of the
two political parties into which, under one name or
another, the American people have at most origin of
times been divided. Hamilton's opponents, ^^^^
led by Jefferson, objected to his principal **^
measures that they assumed powers in the national
government which were not granted to it by the Con-
stitution. Hamilton then fell back upon the Elastic
Clause ^ of the Constitution, and maintained that such
powers were implied in it. Jefferson held that this
doctrine of '^implied powers" stretched the Elastic
Clause too far. He held that the Elastic Clause ought
to be construed strictly and narrowly ; Hamilton held
that it ought to be construed loosely and liberally.
Hence the names " strict-constructionist " and " loose-
constructionist," which mark perhaps the most pro-
found and abiding antagonism in the history of
American politics.
Practically all will admit that the Elastic Clause, if
construed strictly, ought not to be construed too
narrowly ; and, if construed liberally, ought not to be
construed too loosely. Neither party has been con-
sistent in applying its principles, but in the main we
can call Hamilton the founder of the Federalist party,
which has had for its successors the National Bepubli-
cans of 1828, the Whigs of 1833 to 1852, and the Be-
publicans of 1854 to the present time ; while we can call
^ In 1808, on the occasion of the Spanish war, taxation by stamps
was renewed.
^ Article I., section viii., clause 18 ; see above, p. 265.
274 THE FEDERAL UNION.
Jefferson the founder of the party which called itself
Republican from about 1792 to about 1828, and since
then has been known as the Democratic party. This
is rather a rough description in view of the real coiA-
plication of the historical facts, but it is an approxi-
mation to the truth.
It is not my purpose here to give a sketch of the
history of American parties. Such a sketch, if given in
due relative proportion, would double the size of this
little book, of which the main purpose is to treat of
^^^^^ j^^ civil government in the United States with
temai'im- reference to its origins. But it may here be
gdNatkmai said m general that the practical questions
which have divided the two great parties
have been concerned with the powers of the national
government as to (1) the Tariff; (2) the making
of roads, improving rivers and harbours, etc., under
the general head of Internal Improvements ; and (3)
the establishment of a National Banh^ with the nar
tional government as partner hdding shares in it and
taking a leading part in the direction of its affairs.
On the question of such a national bank the Demo-
cratic party achieved a complete and decisive victory
under President Tyler. On the question of internal
improvements the opposite party still holds the
ground, but most of its details have been settled by
the great development of the powers of private enter-
prise during the past sixty years, and it is not at
present a " burning question." The question of the
tariff, however, remains to-day as a "burning ques-
tion," but it is no longer argued on grounds of con-
stitutional law, but on grounds of political economy.
Hamilton's construction of the Elastic Clause has to
this extent prevailed, and mainly for the reason that a
liberal construction of that clause was needed in order
A FEW WORDS ABOUT POLITICS. 276
to give the national government enough power to re-
strict the spread of slavery and suppress the great
rebellion of which slavery was the exciting cause.
Another political question, more important, if pos-
sible, than that of the Tariff, is to-day the question of
the reform of the Civil Service; but it is civaaervioe
not avowedly made a party question. Twenty '«*onn.
years ago both parties laughed at it ; now both try to
treat it with a show of respect and to render unto it
lip-homage ; and the control of the immediate political
future probably lies with the party which treats it
most seriously. It is a question that was not distinctly
foreseen in the days of Hamilton and Jefferson, when
the Constitution was made and adopted ; otherwise,
one is inclined to believe, the framers of the Consti-
tution would have had something to say about it.
The question as to the Civil Service arises from the
fact that the president has the power of appointing
a vast number of petty officials, chiefly postmasters
and officials concerned with the collection of the fed-
eral revenue. Such officials have properly nothing to
do with politics ; they are simply the agents or clerks
or servants of the national government in conducting
its business : and if the business of the national gov-
ernment is to be managed on such ordinary principles
of prudence as prevail in the management of private
business, such servants ought to be selected for per-
sonal merit and retained for life or during good be-
haviour. It did not occur to our earlier presidents to
regard the management of the public business in any
other light than this.
But as early as the beginning of the nineteenth cen-
tury a vicious system was growing up in New York
and Pennsylvania. In those states the appointive
offices came to be used as bribes or as rewards for
276 THE FEDERAL UNION.
partisan services. By securing votes for a successful
^^^ . . candidate, a man with little in liis pocket and
Origin of the ...
" 8iK^ iTB- nothiug in particular to do could obtain some
office with a comfortable salary. It would
be given him as a reward, and some other man, per-
haps more competent than himself, would have to be
turned out in order to make room for him. A more
effective method of driving good citizens " out of poli-
tics " could hardly be devised. It called to the front
a large class of men of coarse moral fibre who greatly
preferred the excitement of speculating in politics to
earning an honest living by some ordinary humdrum
business. The civil service of these states was se-
riously damaged in quality, politics degenerated into
a wild scramble for offices, salaries were paid to men
who did little or no public service in return, and thus
the line which separates taxation from robbery was
often crossed.
About the same time there grew up an idea that
there is something especially democratic, and there-
fore meritorious, about " rotation in office." Govern-
.. Rotation nient offices were regarded as plums at which
inofflce.»' evcry one ought to be allowed a chance to
take a bite. The way was prepared in 1820 by W. H.
Crawford, of Georgia, who succeeded in getting the law
enacted that limits the tenure of office for postmasters,
revenue collectors, and other servants of the federal
government to four years. The importance of this
measure was not understood, and it excited very little
discussion at the time. The next presidential election
which resulted in a change of party was that of Jack-
son in 1828, and then the methods of New York and
Pennsylvania were applied on a national scale. Jack-
son cherished the absurd belief that the administration
of his predecessor Adams had been corrupt, and he
A FEW WORDS ABOUT POLITICS. 277
turned men out of office with a keen zest. During
the forty years between Washington's first inaugura-
tion and Jackson's the total number of removals from
office was 74, and out of this number 5 were default-
ers. During the first year of Jackson's administra-
tion the number of changes made in the xhe^spoUB
civil service was about 2,000.^ Such was SS?^
the abrupt inauguration upon a national ^^°'°^
scale of the so-called ^^ spoils system." The phrase
originated with W. L. Marcy, of New York, who in
a speech in the senate in 1831 declared that ^' to the
victors belong the spoils." The man who said this
of course did not realize that he was making one of
the most shameful remarks recorded in history. There
was, however, much aptness in his phrase, inasmuch
as it was a confession that the business of American
politics was about to be conducted on principles fit
only for the warfare of barbarians.
In the canvass of 1840 the Whigs promised to re-
form the civil service, and the promise brought them
many Democratic votes ; but after they had won the
election, they followed Jackson's example. The
Democrats followed in the satne way in 1845, and
from that time down to 1885 it was customary at each
change of pariy to make a " clean sweep " of the
offices. Soon after the Civil War the evils of the
system began to attract serious attention on the part
of thoughtful people. The " spoils system " has
helped to sustain all manner of abominations, from
grasping monopolies and civic jobbery down to po-
litical rum-shops. The. virus runs through everything,
and the natural tendency of the evil is to grow with
the growth of the country.
In 1883 Congress passed the Civil Service Act,
^ Sumner's Jackson, p. 147.
278 THE FEDERAL UNION.
allowing the president to select a board of examiners
on whose recommendation appointments are
Service Act made. Candidates for office are subjected
to an easy competitive examination. The
system has worked well in other countries, and under
Presidents Arthur and Cleveland it was applied to
a considerable part of the civil service. It has also
been adopted in some states and cities. The oppo-
nents of reform object to the examination that it is
not always intimately connected with the work of the
office,^ but, even if this were so, the merit of the sys-
tem lies in its removal of the offices from the category
of things known as "patronage." It relieves the
president of much needless work and wearisome im-
portunity. The president and the heads of depart-
ments appoint (in many cases, through subordinates)
about 115,000 officials. It is therefore impossible to
know much about their character or competency. It
becomes necessary to act by advice, and the advice of
an examining board is sure to be much better than
the advice of political schemers intent upon getting
a salaried office for their needy friends. The ex-
amination system has made a fair beginning and will
doubtless be gradually improved and made more strin-
gent. Something too has been done toward stopping
two old abuses attendant upon political canvasses, —
(1) forcing government clerks, under penalty of losing
their places, to contribute part of their salaries for
election purposes ; (2) allowing government clerks to
^ The objection that the examination questions are irrelevant
to the work of the o€Qce is often madie the occasion of gross ex-
aggeration. I have given, in Appendix I, an average sample of
the examination papers used in the customs service. It is taken
from United States Civil Service Commission, Instructions to Appli-
cants j etc. Form 117, October, 1900. Washington, Grovem-
meut Printing Office, 1900.
A FEW WORDS ABOUT POLITICS. 279
neglect their work in order to take an active part in
the canvass. Before the reform of the civil service
can be completed, however, it will be necessary to re-
peal Crawford's act of 1820 and make the tenure of
postmasters and revenue collectors as secure as that of
the chief justice of the United States.
Another political reform which promises excellent
results is the adoption by many states of some form
of the Australian ballot-system, for the pur-
pose of checking intimidation and bribery uanbaiicyt-
at elections. The ballots are printed by the
state, and contain the names of all the candidates of
aU the parties. Against the name of each candidate
the party to which he belongs is designated, and
against each name there is a small vacant space to be
filled with a cross. At the polling-place tiie ballots
are kept in an inclosure behind a railing, and no bal-
lot can be brought outside under penalty of fine or
imprisonment.^ One ballot is nailed against the wall
outside the railing, so that it may be read at leisure.
The space behind the railing is divided into separate
booths quite screened from each other. Each booth
is provided with a pencil and a convenient shelf on
which to write. The voter goes behind the raiKng,
takes the ballot which is handed him, carries it into
one of the booths, and marks a cross against the
names of the candidates for whom he votes. He then
puts his ballot into the box, aud his name is checked
off on the register of voters of the precinct. This sys-
tem is very simple, it enables a vote to be given in
absolute secrecy, and it keeps " heelers " aw^ from
^ This is a brief description of the system lately adopted in
Massachusetts. The penalty here mentioned is a fine not ex-
eeeding a thousand dollars, or imprisonment not exceeding one
fear, or both such fine and such imprisonment.
280 THE FEDERAL UNION.
the polls. It is favourable to independence in voting,^
and it is unfavourable to bribery, because unless i^e
briber can follow his man to the polls and see how he
votes, he cannot be sure that his bribe is effective.
To make the precautions against bribery complete it
will doubtless be necessary to add to the secret ballot
the English system of accounting for election ex-
penses. All the funds used in an election must pass
through the hands of a small local committee, vouch-
ers must be received for every penny that is ex-
pended, and after the election an itemized account
must be made out and its accuracy attested under
oath before a notary public This system of account-
ing has put an end to bribery in England.^
Complaints of bribery and corruption have attracted
especial attention in the United States during the past
few years, and it is highly creditable to the good sense
of the people that measures of prevention have been
^ It is especially favourable to independence in voting, if the
lists of the candidates are placed in a single column, withoat
reference to party (each name of course, having the proper
party designation, " Rep.," " Dem.," " Prohib.," etc., attached to
it). In such case it must necessarily take the voter some little
time to find and mark each name for which he wishes to rote.
If, however, the names of the candidates are arranged according
to their party, all the Republicans in one list, all the Democrats
in another, etc., this arrangement is much less favourable to in-
dependence in voting and much less efficient as a check upon
bribery ; because the man who votes a straight party ticket will
make all his marks in a very short time, while the '' scratcher,"
or independent voter, will consume much more time in selecting
his names. Thus people interested in seeing whether a man iB
voting the straight party ticket or not can form an opinion from
the length of time he spends in the booth. It is, therefore, im-
portant that the names of all candidates should be printed in a
single column.
^ An important step in this direction has been taken in the
New York Corrupt Practices Act of April, 1890. See Appendix J
A FEW WORDS ABOUT POLITICS. 281
so promptly adopted by so many states. With an in-
dependent and uncorrupted ballot, and the civil service
taken ^^ out of politics," all other reforms will become
far more easily accomplished. These ends wiU pre-
sently be attained. Popular government makes many
mistakes, and sometimes it is slow in finding them out |
but when once it has discovered them it has a way of
correcting them. It is the best kind of government
in the world, the most wisely conservative, the most
steadily progressive, and the most likely to endure.
QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT.
1. What was a chief source of opposition to the new federal
government ?
2. What necessity for caation existed in devising methods to
raise money ?
3. Hamilton's scheme of excise : —
a. The things on which excise was laid.
h. The unpopularity of the scheme.
c. The " Whiskey Insurrection."
d. Its suppression by Washington.
4. Hamilton's tariff scheme : —
a. The class of things on which duties were placed.
h. Popular acquiescence in the plan.
c. Effect of diverting the stream of custom-house revenue
from its old destination in the several state treasuries to
its new destination in the federal treasury.
rf. Direct taxation during the Civil War.
e. Methods pursued since the Civil War.
5 The origin of American political paziJiies : —
a. Jefferson's objection to Hamilton's policy.
h. Hamilton's defence of his policy.
c. Jefferson's view of the Elastic Clause.
d. Hamilton's view of the Elastic Clause.
e. Two names suggestive of an abiding antagonism in Ameri-
can politics.
f. A view of the Elastic Clause that commends itself to all.
g. The party of Hamilton and its successors.
A. The party of Jefferson and its successor.
6. Great practical questions that have divided parties : —
282 THE FEDERAL UNION.
a. The Tariff.
b. Internal Improvements.
c. A National Bank.
d. The present attitude towards these three qaestions.
e. The shifting of ground in arguing the tariff question.
/. The reason for this change of base.
7. Civil Service reform : —
a. The attitude of parties a few years ago.
b. The present attitude of the same parties.
c. A question not foreseen.
d. The number of officers appointed.
e. The non-political nature of their duties.
f. The principles that should prevail in their selection and
service.
8. The " spoils system " : —
a. Early appointive officers in New York and Pennsylvania.
b. The driving of good citizens out of politics.
c. The character of the men called to the front.
d. The effect on civil service and on politics.
9. Rotation in office : —
a. A new idea about government offices.
b. Crawford's law of 1820.
c. Failure to grasp its significance.
d. Jackson's course in 1829.
e. Removals from office down to Jackson's time.
y*. Removals during the first year of Jackson's administra-
tion.
g. Origin of the phrase, ** spoils system."
h. Promises and practice down to 1885.
t. The evils conspicuous since the Civil War.
10. The Civil Service Act of 1883.
a. A board of examiners.
b. Competitive examination of candidates.
c. The spread of the principles of the reform.
d. The merit of the system.
6. Two old abuses stopped.
/, Further measures needed.
1 1 • The Australian ballot system : —
a. The object of this system.
b. The printing of the ballots.
c. What a ballot contains.
d» Ballots at the poUing-plaoes.
A FEW WORDS ABOUT POLITICS, 288
e. The booths.
/. The maimer of voting.
g. The advantages of the system.
A. An additional precaution against bribery.
12. What is the attitude of the people towards bribery and coiv
ruption ?
13. What reforms must be accomplished before others can make
much headway ?
SUGOESTIYE QUESTIONS AND DIRECTIONS.
1. How much money is needed by the United States govern-
ment for the expenses of a year ? How much is needed
for the army, the navy, the interest on the public debt,
pensions, rivers and harbours, ordinary civil expenses,
etc. ? (Answer for any recent year.)
2. From what sources does the revenue come ? Tell how
much revenue each of the several sources has yielded in
any recent year.
3. What is the origin of the word tariff t
4. What is meant by protection t What is meant hjfree trade f
What is meant by a tariff for revenue onlyt What is
meant by reciprocity t Give illustrations.
5. What are some of the reasons assigned for protection ?
6. What are some of the reasons assigned for free trade ?
7. Which policy prevails among the states themselves ?
8. Which policy prevails between the United States and other
nations ?
9* Mention all the kinds of United States money in circula-
tion. Bring into the class a national bank bill, a gold
certificate, a silver certificate, any piece that is used as
money, and inquire wherein its value lies, what it can or
cannot be used for, what the United States will or will
not give in exchange for it, and whether it is worth its
face in gold or not.
10. Is it right to buy silver at seventy-five cents and then put it
into circulation stamped a dollar, the Government receiv-
ing the profit ? Can you get a gold dollar for a silver one ?
IT. Is a promise to pay a dollar a real dollar ? May it be as
good as a dollar ? If so, under what conditions ?
12. If gold were as common as gravel, what characteristics of it
universally recognized would remain unchanged ? What
would become of its purchasing power, if it cost little or
284 THE FEDERAL UNION.
no labour to obtain it ? Why is it accepted as a standard
of value ?
13. During the Civil War gold was said to fluctuate in value,
because it took two dollars of paper money, sometimes
more, sometimes less, to buy one dollar in gold. Where
was the real chauging ? What was the cause of it ?
14. What men are at the head of the national government at the
present time ? (Think of the executive department and
its primary divisions, the legislative department, and the
judicial.)
15. What salaries are paid these officers ? Compare American
salaries with European salaries for corresponding high
positions.
16. Should a president serve a second term ? What is the ad-
vantage of such service ? What is the objection to it ?
Is a single term of six years desirable ?
17. Ought the president to be elected directly by the people ?
18. Name in order the persons entitled to succeed to the presi-.
dency in case of vacancy.
19. Who is your representative in Congress ?
20. Who are your senators in Congress ?
21. What is the pay of members of Congress ? Who determine
the compensation ? What is there to prevent lavish or
improper pay ?
22. There is said to be "log-rolling" in legislation at times.
What is the nature of this practice ? Is it right ?
23. Is the senator or the representative of higher dignity?
Why?
24. Why should members of Congress be exempted from arrest
in certain cases ?
25. Find authority in the Constitution for various things that
Congress has done, such as the following : —
a. It has established a military academy at West Point.
h. It has given public lands to Pacific railroads.
c. It has authorized uniforms for letter carriers.
d. It has ordered surveys of the coast.
e. It has established the Yellowstone National Park.
f. It has voted millions of dollars for pensions.
g. It refused during the Civil War to pay its promises with
silver or gold.
h. It bought Alaska of Russia.
i. It has adopted exclusive measures towards the Chinese.
A FEW WORDS ABOUT POLITICS. 285
26. Reverse the preceding exercise. That is, cite clauses of the
Constitution, and tell what particular things Congress ha&
done because of such authority. For example, what
specific things have been done under the following pow-
ers of Congress ? —
. a. To collect taxes.
h* To regulate commerce with foreign nations.
c. To coin money.
d. To establish post-roads.
e. To provide for the common defence.
f. To provide for the general welfare.
27. Compare the strength of the national government to-day
with its strength in the past.
28. Who are citizens according to the Constitution ? Is a woman
a citizen ? Is a child a citizen ? Are Indians citizens ?
Are foreigners residing in this country citizens? Are
children bom abroad of American parents citizens ? Can
one person be a citizen of two nations at the same time,
or of two states, or of two towns ? Explain.
29. To what laws is an American vessel on the ocean subject ?
30. Show how the interests and needs of the various sections of
the country present wide differences. Compare mining
sections with agricultural, and both with manufacturing ;
Pacific states with Atlantic ; Northern states with South-
em. What need of mutual consideration exists ?
3 1 . Name all the political divisions from the smallest to the great-
est in which you live. A Cambridge (Mass.) boy might,
for example, say, " I live in the third precinct of the first
ward, in the first Middlesex representative district, the
third Middlesex senatorial district, the third councillor
district,, and the- fifth congressional district. My city is
Cambridge ; my county, Middlesex, etc." Name the
various persons who represent you in these several dis-
tricts.
32. May state and local officers exercise authority on United
States government territory, as, for example, within the
limits of an arsenal or a custom-house ? May national gov-
ernment officers exercise authority in states and towns?
33. What is a sovereign state ? Is New Tork a sovereign state ?
the United States? the Dominion of Canada? Great
Britain ? Explain.
34. When sovereign nations disagree, how can a settlement be
286 THE FEDERAL UNION.
effected? What is the best wsj to settle such a d]»-
agieement? Dlastrate from histoij the methods of
negotiation, of arbitration, and of war.
35* When two states of the Federal Union disagree, what solu-
tion of the difiBcultj is possible ?
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.
The Federal Union. — For the origin of onr federal con-
stitution, see Bancroft's History of the United States^ final editioii,
ToL yL, K. T., 1886 ; Cortis's History of the Constitutum, 2 vols.,
K. Y., 1861, new edition, vol. i., 1889 ; and my Critical Period of
American History, Boston, 1888, with oopioos references in the
bibliographical note at the end. Once more we may refer ad-
yantageoosly to /. H U. Studies, II., y.-tL, H. C. Adams, Ta3>
ation in the United States, 1789-1816 ; VHI., i.-ii., A. W. Small,
The Beginnings of American Nationality, See also Jameson's
Essays in the Constitutional History of the United States in the
Formative Period, 1775-1789, Boston, 1889, a very valuable book.
On the progress toward union during the colonial period, see
especially Frothingham's Rise of the Repvhlic of the United
States, Boston, 1872 ; abo Scott's Development of Constitutional
Liberty in the English Colonies of America, N. Y., 1882.
By far the ablest and most thorough book on the government
of the United States that has ever been published is Bryce's
American CommonujeaUh, 2 vols., London and N. Y., 1888. No
American citizen's education is properly completed until he has
read the whole of it carefully. In connection therewith, the
work of Tocqueville, Democracy in America, 2 vols., 6th ed.,
Boston, 1876, is interesting. The Scotchman describes and dis-
cusses the American commonwealth of to-day, the Frenchman
that of sixty years ago. There is an instructive difference in
the methods of the two writers, Tocqueville being inclined to
draw deductions from ingenious generalizations and to explain
as natural results of democracy sundry American characteristics
that require a different explanation. His great work is admira-
bly reviewed and criticised by Bryce, in the /. H, U. Studies, V.,
ix.. The Predictions of Hamilton and De Tocqueville.
The following manuals may be recommended : Thorpe, TTu
BIBLIOORAPHICAL NOTE. 287
Government of the People of the United States, Fhila., 1889 ; Mar-
tin's Text Book on Civil Oovemment in the United States, N. T.
and Chicago, 1875 (written with special reference to Massachu-
setts) ; Northam's Manual of Civil Qovertiment, STraciise, 1887
(written with special reference to New York) ; Ford's American
Citizen^s Manual, N. Y., 1887 ; Rupert's Guide to the Study of
the History and the Constitution of the United States, Boston, 1888 ;
Andrews's Manual of the Constitution of the United States, Cin-
cinnati, 1874 ; Miss Dawes, How we are Governed, Boston, 1888 ;
Macy, Our Government : How it Grew, What it Does, and How it
Does it, Boston, 1887. The last is especially good, and mingles
narrative with exposition in an unasually interesting way. Nord-
hoff's Politics for Young Americans, N. Y., 1887, is a book that
ought to be read by all young Americans for its robust and sound
political philosophy. It is suitable for boys and girls from
twelve to fifteen years old. C. F. Dole's The Citizen and the
Neighbour, Boston, 1887, is a suggestive and stimulating little
book. For a comparative survey of governmental institutions,
ancient and modem, see Woodrow Wilson's The State: El"
ements of Historical and Practical Politics, Boston, 1889. An
enormous mass of matter is compressed into this volume, and,
although it inevitably suffers somewhat from extreme conden-
sation, it is so treated as to be both readable and instructive.
The chapter on The State and Federal Governments of the United
States has b!^en published separately, and makes a convenient
little volume of 131 pages. Teachers should find much help in
MacAlister's Syllabus of a Course of Elementary Instruction in
United States History and CivU Government, Fhila., 1887.
The following books of the ** English Citizen Series," pub-
lished by Macmillan & Co., may often be profitably consulted :
M. D. Chalmers, Local Government; H. D. Traill, Central Gov-
^emment; F. W. Maitland, Justice and Police; Spencer Walpole^
The Electorate and the Legislature; A. J. Wilson, The National
Budget; T. H. Farrer, The State in its Relations to Trade; W.
S. Jeyons, The State in its Relations to Labour. The works on
the English Constitution by Stubbs, Gneist, Taswell-Lang-
mead, Freeman, and Bagehot are indispensable to a thorough
understanding of civil government in the United States : Stubbs,
Constitutional History of England, 3 vols., London, 1876-78 ;
Gneist, History of the English Constitution, 2d ed., 2 vols., Lon-
doEy 1889 ; Taswell-Langmead, English Constitutional History,
288 THE FEDERAL UNION.
5th ed., Boston, 1896 ; Freeman, The Growth of the English Con-
gtitutionj London, 1872 ; Bagehot, 7^ English Constitution^ re-
Yised ed., Boston, 1873. An admirable book in this connection
18 Hannis Taylor's (of Alabama) Origin and Growth of the Eng*
lish Constitution^ Boston, 1889. In connection with Bagehot's
English Constitution the student may profitably read Woodrow
Wilson's Congressional Government^ Boston, 1885, and A. L.
Lowell's Essays in Government^ Boston, 1890. See also Sir H.
Maine, Popular Chvemmentj London, 1886 ; Sir G. C. Lewis on
The Use and Abuse of Certain Political Terms, London, 1832 ;
Methods of Observation and Reasoning m Politics,^ vols., London,
1852 ; and Dialogue on the Best Form of Government^ London, 1863.
Among the most valuable books ever written on the proper
sphere and duties of civil government are Herbert Spencer's
Social Statics, London, 1851 ; The Study of Sociology, 9th ed,
London, 1880 ; The Man versus The State, London, 1884 ; they
are all reprinted by D. Appleton & Co., New York. The views
expressed in Social Statics with regard to the tenure of land are
regarded as unsound by many who are otherwise in entire sym-
pathy with Mr. Spencer's views, and they are ably criticised in
Bonham's Industrial Liberty, N. T., 1888. A book of great merit,
which ought to be reprinted as it is now not easy to obtain, is
Toulmin Smith's Local Sdf-Govemment and Centralization, Lon-
don, 1851. Its point of view is sufficiently indicated by the
following admirable pair of maTinna (p. 12) : —
<< Local Self-government is that system of Government tm-
der which the greatest number of minds, knowing the most, and
having the fullest opportunities of knowing it, about the special mat'
ter in hand, and having the greatest interest in its well-working,
have the management of it, or control over it.
** Centralization is that system of government under which (he
smallest number of minds, and those knowing the least, and having
the fewest opportunities of knowing it, about the special matter m
hand, and having the smallest interest in its well-working, have the
management of it, or control over it.**
• An immense amount of wretched misg^vernment would he
avoided if all legislators and all voters would eng^ve these
wholesome definitions upon their minds. In connection with the
books just mentioned much detailed and valuable information
may be found in the collections of essays edited by J. W. Fro*
byn, Local Government and Taxation [in various countries],
London, 1875 ; Local Government and Taxation in the Unded
BIBLIOORAPHICAL NOTE. 289
Kingdomy London, 1882. See also B. T. Elj's Taxatian in Amer-
ican States and Cities, N. Y., 1889.
The most elaborate work on our political history is that of
Hermann von Hoist, Constitutional and Political History of the
United States, translated from the German by J. J. Lalor, vols.
i.-vi. (1787-1869), Chicago, 1877-89. In spite of a somewhat too
pronounced partisan bias, its value is great. See also Schouler's
History of the United States under the Constitutum, vols, i.-yi.
(1783-1865), new ed., N. Y., 1899. The most useful handbook,
alike for teachers and for pupils, is Alexander Johnston's His^
toryofA merican Politics, 2d ed., N. Y., 1882. The United States,
N. Y., 1889, by the same author, is also excellent. Every school
should possess a copy of Lalor's Cydopaxlia of Political Science,
Political Economy, and the Political History of the United States,
3 vols., Chicago, 1882-84. The numerous articles in it relating
to American history are chiefly by Alexander Johnston, whose
mastery of his subject was simply unrivalled. See also Gramaliel
Bradford's Lessons of Popular Government, New York, 1899.
For a manual of constitutional law, Cooley's General Principles
of Constitutional Law in the United States of America, Boston, 1880,
is to be recommended. The reader may fitly supplement his
general study of civil government by the little book of £. P.
Dole, Talks about Law : a Popular Statement of What our Law is
and How it is to be Administered^ Boston, 1887.
In connection with the political history, Stanwood's History of
the Presidency, Boston, 1898, will be found useful. See also
Lawton's American Caucus System, N. Y., 1885. On the gen-
eral subject of civil service reform, see Eaton's Civil Service in
Great Britain : a History of Abuses and Reforms, and their Bear--
ing upon American Politics, N. Y., 1880. Comstock's Civil Ser^
vice in the United States, N. Y., 1885, is a catalogue of ofiBces,
with full account of civil service rules, examinations, specimens
of examination papers, etc. ; also some of the state rules, as in
New York, Massachusetts, etc.
I would here call attention to some publications by the Di-
rectors of the Old South Studies in History and Politics, —
first. The Constitution of the United States, with Historical and
Bibliographical Notes and Outlines for Study, prepared by E. D.
Mead (Directors of the Old South Work, 25 cents) ; secondly,
the Old South Le<\flets, furnished to schools and the trade by
290 THE FEDERAL UNION.
the same pablishers, at 5 cents a copy or $4.00 a handled.
These leaflets are for the most part reprints of important original
papers, famished with valnable historical and bibliographical
notes. The titles of the earliest issaes in this series are as
foUows : 1. The Ccmstitation of the United States ; 2. The Axw
tides of Confederation ; 3. The Declaration of Independence ;
4. Washington's Farewell Address ; 5. Magna Charta ; 6. Vane's
*< Healing Qaestion ; " 7. Charter of Massachasetts Bay, 1629;
8. Fandamental Orders of Connecticat, 1639 ; 9. Franklin's Fkn
of Union, 1754 ; 10. Washington's Inaagarals ; 11. Lincoln's
Inaugurals and Emancipation Proclamation ; 12. The Federalist,
Nos. 1 and 2 ; 13. The Ordinance of 1787 ; 14 The Constita-
tion of Ohio ; 15. Washington's " Legacy " ; 16. Washington's
Letter to Benjamin Harrison, Groyemor of Virginia, on the
Opening of Commanication with the West ; 17. Verrazano's
Voyage, 1524 ; 18. Federal Constitution of the Swiss Confedera-
tion. (Additions are made to this list every year.)
Howard Preston's Documents lUustratwe of American History^
K. Y., 1886, contains the foUowing : First Virginia Charter,
1606 ; Second TTirgiuia Charter, 1609 ; Third Virginia Charter,
1612 ; Mayflower Compact, 1620 ; Massachusetts Charter, 1629 ;
Maryland Charter, 1632 ; Fundamental Orders of Connecticaty
1639 ; New England Confederation, 1643 ; Connecticut Charter,
1662 ; Rhode Island Charter, 1663 ; Pennsylvania Charter,
1681 ; Penn's Plan of Union, 1697 ; Georgia Charter, 1732 ;
Franklin's Plan of Union, 1754 ; Declaration of Rights, 1766 ;
Declaration of Rights, 1774 ; Non-Importation Agreement, 1774 ;
Virginia Bill of Rights, 1776 ; Declaration of Independence,
1776 ; Articles of Confederation, 1777 ; Treaty of Peace, 1783 ;
Northwest Ordinance, 1787 ; Constitution of the United States,
1787 ; Alien and Sedition Laws, 1798 ; Virginia Resolutions,
1798 ; Kentucky Resolutions, 1798 ; Kentucky Resolutions,
1799 ; Nullification Ordinance, 1832 ; Ordinance of Secession,
1860 ; South Carolina Declaration of Independence, 1860 ; Eman-
cipation Proclamation, 1863.
See also Poore's Federal and State ConstUutums, Colonial
Charters, and other Organic Laws of the United States, 2 vols.,
Washington, 1877.
The series of essays entitled The Federalist, written by Hamil —
ton, Madison, and Jay, in 1787-88, while the ratification of the^^
Constitution was in question, will always remain indispensable
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE. 291
M an introdaotion to the thoroagh stady of the principles upon
which our federal goyemment is based. The most recent edi-
tion b by H. G. Lodge, N. Y., 1888. For the systematic and
ekiborate study of the Constitution, see Foster's References to the
Constitution of the United States^ a little pamphlet of 50 pages
published by the « Society for Political Education," 330 Pearl St,
New York, 1890, price 25 cents.
For very pleasant and profitable reading, in connection with
the formation and interpretation of the Constitution, and the
political history of our country from 1763 to 1850, we have the
** American Statesmen Series," edited by J. T. Morse, and pub-
lished by Houghton, Miffiin & Co., Boston, 1882-96 : Benja-
min Franklin^ by J. T. Morse ; Patrick Henry, by M. C. Tyler ;
Samud Adams, by J. K. Hosmer ; George Washington, by H. C.
Lodge, 2 vols. ; John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, by J. T.
Morse ; Alexander Hamilton, by H. C. Lodge ; Gouvemeur Mor*
ris, by T. Boosevelt ; James Madison, by S. H. Gray ; James
Monroe, by D. C. Gilman ; Albert Gallatin, by J. A. Steyens ;
John Randolph, by H. Adams ; John Jay, by 6. Pellew ; John
Marshall, by A. B. Magruder; John Quincy Adams, by J. T.
Morse ; John C, Calhoun, by H. von Hoist ; Andrew Jackson,
by W. 6. Sumner ; Martin Van Buren, by E. M. Shepard ;
Henry Clay, by C. Schurz, 2 vols. ; Daniel Wdtster, by H. C.
Lodge ; Thomas H, Benton, by T. Roosevelt ; Lewis Cass, by
Frof. Andrew C. McLaughlin; Abraham Lincoln, by John T.
Morse, Jr., 2 vols. ; William H, Seujord, by Thornton K. Lothrop;
Salmon P. Chase, by Albert Bnshnell Hart ; Charles Francis
Adams, by C. F. Adams, Jr.; Charles Sumner, by Moorfield
Storey; Thaddeus Stevens, by Samuel W. McCall.
Li connection with the questions on page 269 relating to tariff,
currency, etc., references to some works on political economy are
needed. The arguments in favour of protectionism are set forth
in Bowen's American Political Economy, last ed., N. Y., 1870 ; the
arguments in favour of free trade are set forth in Perry's Pa-
litical Economy, 19th ed., N. Y., 1887 ; and for an able and im-
partial historical survey, Taussig's Tariff History of the United
States, N. Y., 1888, may be recommended. For a lucid view of
currency, see Jevons's Money and the Mechanism of Exchange,
K. Y., 1875.
A useful work on the Australian method of voting is Wigmore's
The Australian Ballot System, 2d ed., Boston, 1890.
292 TffE FEDERAL UNION.
Jn connection with some of the questions on page 271, the
■tadent may profitably consult Woolsey's Intematianal Law, Bth
ed., N. Y., 1879.
NOTE TO PAGE 284.
Bt the act of February 3» 1887, the second Monday in Jannaiy
is fixed for the meeting of the electoral colleges in all the states.
The provisions relating to the first Wednesday in January aie
repealed. The interval between the second Monday in Jannarj
and the second Wednesday in February remains available for
the settlement of disputed questions.
NOTE TO PAGE 26a
In order to relieve the supreme court of the United States,
which had come to be overburdened with business, a new court,
with limited appellate jurisdiction, called the circuit court of
appeals, was organized in 1892. It consists primarily of nine
appeal judges, one for each of the nine circuits. For any given
circuit the supreme court justice of the circuit; the appeal judge
of the circuit, and the circuit judge constitute the court of appeal.
APPENDIX A.
THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION.
ArHdes of Confederation ana Perpetual Union between the States
of New Hampshire^ Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island and
Providence PlantaiionSy Connecticut, New York, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina,
South Carolina, and Georgia,
Article L — The style of this Confederacy shall be, " The
United States of America. "
Art. II. — Each State retains its sovereignty, freedom, and
independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right, which is
not by this Confederation expressly delegated to the United
States in Congress assembled.
Art. IIL — The said States hereby severally enter into a
firm league of friendship with each other, for their common de-
fence, the security of their liberties, and their mutual and gen-
eral welfare, binding themselves to assist each other against all
force offered to, or attacks made upon them, or any of them, on
account of religion, sovereignty, trade, or any other pretence
whatever.
Art. IV. — The better to secure and perpetuate mutual
friendship and intercourse among the people of the different
States in this Union, the free inhabitants of each of these States,
paupers, vagabonds, and fugitives from justice excepted, shall
be entitled to all privileges and immunities of free citizens in
the several States; and the people of each State shall have free
ingress and egress to and from any other State, and shall enjoy
therein all the privileges of trade and commerce subject to the
same duties, impositions, and restrictions as the inhabitants
thereof respectively; provided that such restrictions shall not
extend so far as to prevent the removal of property imported
into any State to any other State of which the owner is an in*
294 APPENDIX A.
habitant; provided also, that no imposition, duties, or restriction
shall be laid by any State on the property of the United States
or either of them. If any person guilty of, or charged with,
treason, felony, or other high misdemeanour in any State shall
flee from justice and be found in any of the United States, he
shall, upon demand of the governor or executive power of the
State from which he fled, be delivered up and removed to the
State having jurisdiction of his offense. Full faith and credit
shall be given in each of these States to the records, acts, and
judicial proceedings of the courts and magistrates of every other
State.
Art. V. — For the more*" convenient management of the
general interests of the United States, delegates shall be annually
appointed in such manner as the Legislature of each State shall
direct, to meet in Congress on the first Monday in November,
in every year, with a power reserved to each State to recall its
delegates, or any of them, at any time within the year, and to
send others in their stead for the remainder of the year. No
State shall be represented in Congress by less than two^ nor by
more than seven members; and no person shall be capable of
being a delegate for more than three years in any term of six
years; nor shall any person, being a delegate, be Capable oi
holding any office under the United States for which he, or
another for his benefit, receives any salary, fees, or emolument
of any kind. Each State shall maintain its own delegates in
any meeting of the States and while they act as members of the
Committee of the States. In determining questions in the
United States, in Congress assembled, each State shall have one
vote. Freedom of speech and debate in Congress shall not be
impeached or questioned in any court or place out of Congress;
and the members of Congress shall be protected in their per-
sons from arrests and imprisonment during the time of their
going to and from, and attendance on, Congress, except for
treason, felony, or breach of the peace.
Art. VI. — No State, without the consent of the United
States, in Congress assembled, shall send any embassy to, or
receive any embassy from, or enter into any conference, agree-
ment, alliance, or treaty with any king, prince, or state; nor
shall any person holding any office of profit or trust under the
United States, or any of them, accept of any present, emolu-
ment, office, or title of any kind whatever from any king, prince,
or foreign state; nor shall the United States, in Congress
sembled, or any of them, grant any title of nobility.
ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 296
No two or more States shall enter into any treaty, confeder^
ation, or alliance whatever between them, without the consent
of the United States, in Congress assembled, specifying accu-
rately the purposes for which the same is to be entered into^ and
how long it shall continue.
No State shall lay any imposts or duties which may interfere
with any stipulations in treaties entered into by the United
States, in Congress assembled, with any king, prince, or state,
in pursuance of any treaties already proposed by Congress to
the courts of France and Spain.
No vessel of war shall be kept up in time of peace by any
State, except such number only as shall be deemed necessary
by the United States, in Congress assembled, for the defence of
such St&te or its trade, nor shall any body of forces be kept uf^
l>y any State in time of peace, except such number only as, in
the judgment of the United States, in Congress assembled, shall
be deemed requisite to garrison the forts necessary for the de-
fence of such State ; but every State shall always keep up a
well-regulated and disciplined militia, sufficiently armed and
accoutred, and shall provide and constantly have ready for use
in public stores a due number of field-pieces and tents, and a
proper quantity of arms, ammunition, and camp equipage.
No State shall engage in any war without the consent of the
United States, in Congress assembled, unless such State be
actually invaded by enemies, or shall have received certain ad-
vice of a resolution being formed by some nation of Indians to
invade such State, and the danger is so imminent as not to ad^
mit of a delay till the United States, in Congress assembled,
can be consulted ; nor shall any State grant commissions to any
ships or vessels of war, nor letters of marque or reprisal, except
it be after a declaration of war by the United States, in Con-
gress assembled, and then only against the kingdom or state,
and the subjects thereof, against which war has been so de-
clared, and under such regulations as shall be established by the
United States, in Congress assembled, unless such State be in-
fested by pirates, in which case vessels of war may be fitted out
for that occasion, and kept so long as the danger shall continue,
dr until the United States, in Congress assembled, shall deter-
mine otherwise.
Art. VII. — When land forces are raised by any State for
the common defence, all officers of or under the rank of Colonel
shall be appointed by the Legislature of each State respectively
296 APPENDIX A.
by whom sach forces shall be raised, or in snch manner as snch
State shall direct, and all yacancies shall be filled up by the
State which first made the appointment
Art. VIII. — All charges of war, and all other expenses
that shall be incurred for the common defence, or general wel-
fare, and allowed by the United States, in Congress assembled,
shall be defrayed out of a common treasury, which shall be sup-
plied by the several States in proportion to the value of all land
within each State, granted to, or surveyed for, any person, as
such land and the buildings and improvements thereon shall be
estimated, according to such mode as the United States, in
Congress assembled, shall, from time to time, direct and ap-
point. The taxes for paying that proportion shall be laid and
levied by the authority and direction of the Legislatures of the
several States, within the time agreed upon by the United
States, in Congress assembled.
Art. IX. — The United States, in Congress assembled,
shall have the sole and exclusive right and power of determining
on peace and war, except in the cases mentioned in the sixth
Article; of sending and receiving ambassadors; entering into
treaties and alliances, provided that no treaty of commerce
shall be made, whereby the legislative power of the respective
States shall be restrained from imposing such imposts and
duties on foreigners as their own people are subjected to, or
from prohibiting the exportation or importation of any species
of goods or commodities whatever; of establishing rules for
deciding, in all cases, what captures on land and water shall be
legal, and in what manner prizes taken by land or naval forces
in the service of the United States shall be divided or appropri-
ated; of granting letters of marque and reprisal in times of
peace; appointing courts for the trial of piracies and felonies
committed on the high seas ; and establishing courts for receiv-
ing and determining finally ap{>eals in all cases of captures;
provided that no member of Congress shall be appointed a judge
of any of the said courts.
The United States, in Congress assembled, shall also be the
last resort on appeal in all disputes and differences now sub-
sisting, or that hereafter may arise between two or more States
concerning boundary jurisdiction^ or any other cause what-
ever; which authority shall always be exercised in the manner
following: Whenever the legislative or executive authority, or
lawful agent of any State in controversy with another, shall
ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 297
present a petition to Congress, stating the matter in question,
and praying for a hearing, notice thereof shall be given by
order of Congress to the legislative or executive authority of the
other State in controversy, and a day assigned for the appear-
once of the parties by their lawful agents, who shall then be
directed to appoint, by joint consent, commissioners or judges
to constitute a court for hearing and determining the matter in
question ; but if they cannot agree, Congress shall name three
persons out of each of the United States, and from the list of
such persons each party shall alternately strike out one, the
petitioners beginning, until the number shall be reduced to
thirteen; and from that number not less than seven nor more
than nine names, as Congress shall direct, shall, in the presence
of Congress, be drawn out by lot; and the persons whose names
shall be so drawn, or any five of them, shall be commissioners
or judges, to hear and finally determine the controversy, so
always as a major part of the judges who shall hear the cause
shall agree in the determination; and if either party shall
neglect to attend at the day appointed, without showing reasons
which Congress shall judge sufficient, or being present, shall
refuse to strike, the Congress shall proceed to nominate three
persons out of each State, and the secretary of Congress shall
strike in behalf of such party absent or refusing; and the judg-
ment and sentence of the court, to be appointed in the manner
before prescribed, shall be final and conclusive; and if any of
the parties shall refuse to submit to the authority of such court,
or to appear or defend their claim or cause, the court shall
nevertheless proceed to pronounce sentence or judgment, which
shall in like manner be final and decisive; the judgment or
sentence and other proceedings being in either case transmitted
to Congress, and lodged among the acts of Congress for the
security of the parties concerned ; provided, that every commis-
sioner, before he sits in judgment, shall take an oath, to be ad-
ministered by one of the judges of the supreme or superior court
of the State where the cause shall be tried, '< well and truly to
hear and determine the matter in question, according to the best
of his judgment, without favour, affection, or hope of reward."
Provided, also, that no State shall be deprived of territory for
the benefit of the United States.
All controversies concerning the private right of soil claimed
under different grants of two or more States, whose jurisdictions,
at they may respect such lands, and the States which passed
298 APPENDIX A.
foch grants are adjnatedy the said grants or dther of them being
at the same tune clauned to have originated antecedent to such
settlement of jarisdicdon, shall, on the petition of either party
to the Congress of the United States, be finallj determined, as
near as maj be, in the same manner as is before prescribed for
deciding itisputes respecting territorial jurisdiction between
different States.
The United States, in Congress assembled, shall also have
the sole and exclusive right and power of regolating the alloy
and value of coin struck by their own authority, or by that of
the respective States ; fixing the standard of weights and meas-
ures throughout the United States; regulating the trade and
managing all affairs with the Indians, not members of any of
the States; provided that the legislative right of any State,
within its own limits, be not infringed or violated ; establishing
and regulating post-offices from one State to another, throughout
all the United States, and exacting such postage on the papers
passing through the same as may be requisite to defray the ex-
penses of the said office ; appointing all officers of ihe land
forces in the service of the United States, excepting regimental
officers ; appointing all the officers of the naval forces, and com-
missioning all officers whatever in the service of the United
States; making rules for the government and regulation of the
said land and naval forces, and directing their operations.
The United States, in Congress assembled, shall have author-
ity to appoint a committee, to sit in the recess of Congress, to
be denominated '' A Committee of the States," and to consist
of one delegate from each State, and to appoint such other
committees and civil officers as may be necessary for managing
the general affairs of the United States under their direction ;
to appoint one of their number to preside ; provided that no
person be allowed to serve in the office of president more than
one year in any term of three years ; to ascertain the necessary
sums of money to be raised for the service of the United States,
and to appropriate and apply the same for defraying the public
expenses ; to borrow money or emit bills on the credit of the
United States, transmitting every half year to the respectite
States an account of the sums of money so borrowed or emitted;
to build and equip a navy; to agree upon the number of land
forces, and to make requisitions from each State for its quota*
in proportion to the number of white inhabitants in such State,
which requisition shall be binding ; and thereupon the Legislsr
ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 299
tare of each State shall appomt the regunental officen, raise the
men, and clothe, arm, and equip them in a soldier-like manner,
at the expense of the United States ; and the officers and men
so clothed, armed, and equipped shall march to the place ap-
pointed, and within the time agreed on by the United States, in
Congress assembled ; but if the United States, in Congresi
assembled, sha]|^on consideration of circumstances, judge proper
that any State should not raise men, or should raise a smaller
number than its quota, and that any other State should raise a
greater nmnber of men than the quota thereof, such extra num-
ber shall be raised, officered, clothed, armed, and equipped in
the same manner as the quota of such State, unless the Legis-
lature of such State shall judge thtft such extra number can-
not be safely spared out of the same, in which case they shall
raise, officer, clothe, arm, and equip as many of such extra num-
ber as they judge can be slifely spared, and the officers and men
so clothed, armed, and equipped shall march to the place ap-
pointed, and within the time agreed on by the United States, in
Congress assembled.
The United States, in Congress assembled, shall never en-
gage in a war, nor grant letters of marque and reprisal in time
of peaoe, nor enter into any treaties or alliances, nor coin
money, nor regulate the value thereof, nor ascertain the sums
and expenses necessary for the defense and welfare of the
United States, or any of them, nor emit bills, nor borrow money
on the credit of the United States, nor appropriate money, nor
agree upon the number of vessels of war to be built or pur-
chased, or the number of land or sea forces to be raised, nor
appoint a commander-in-chief of the army or navy, unless nine
States assent to the same, nor shall a question on any other
point, except for adjourning from day to day, be determined,
unless by the votes of a majority of the United States, in Con-
gress assembled.
The Congress of the United States shall have power to ad-
journ to any time within the year, and to any place within the
United States, so that no period of adjournment be for a longer
duration than the space of six months, and shall publish the
journal of their proceedings monthly, except such parts thereof
relating to treaties, alliances, or military operations as in their
judgment require secrecy ; and the yeas and nays of the dele-
gates of each State, on any question, shall be entered on the
journal when it is desired by any delegate ; and the delegates
300 APPENDIX A,
of a State, or any of them, at his or their request, shall be for-
nished with a transcript of the said journal except such parts as
are above excepted, to lay before the Legislatures of the several
States.
Art. X. — The Committee of the States, or any nine ol
them, shall be authorized to execute, in the recess of Congress,
such of the powers of Congress as the United^tates, in Con-
gress assembled, by the consent of nine States, shall, from time
to time, think expedient to vest them with ; provided that no
power be delegated to the said Committee, for the exercise of
which, by the Articles of Confederation, the voice of nine States
in the Congress of the United States assembled is requisite.
Art. XL — Canada, acceding to this Confederation, and
joining in the measures of the United States, shall be adnutted
into, and entitled to all the advantages of this Union ; but no
other colony shall be admitted into the same, unless such ad-
mission be agreed to by nine States.
Art, XII. — All bills of credit emitted, moneys borrowed,
and debts contracted by or under the authority of Congress, be-
fore the assembling of the United States, in pursuance of the
present Confederation, shall be deemed and considered as a
charge against the United States, for payment and satisfaction
whereof the said United States and the public faith are hereby
solemnly pledged.
Art. XIII. — Every State shall abide by the determinations
of the United States, in Congress assembled, on all questions
which by this Confederation are submitted to them. And the
Articles of this Confederation shall be inviolably observed by
every State, and the Union shall be perpetual ; nor shall any
alteration at any time hereafter be made in any of them, unless
such alteration be agreed to in a Congress of the United States,
and be afterwards confirmed by the Legislatures of every State.
And whereas it hath pleased the great Governor of the
world to incline the hearts of the Legislatures we respectively
represent in Congress to approve of, and to authorize us to
ratify, the said Articles of Confederation and perpetual Union,
know ye, that we, the undersigned delegates, by virtue of the
power and authority to us given for that purpose, do, by these
presents, in the name and in behalf of our respective constitu-
ents, fully and entirely ratify and confirm each and every of the
said Articles of Confederation and perpetual Union, and all and
THE CONSTITUTION. 301
fingular the matters and things therein contained. And we do
further solemnly plight and engage the faith of oiir respective
constituents, that they shall abide by the determinations of the
United States, in Congress assembled, on all questions which by
the said Confederation are submitted to them ; and that the
Articles thereof shall be inviolably observed by the States we
respectively represent, and that the Union shall be perpetual.
In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands in Con-
gress. Done at Philadelphia in the State of Pennsylvania
the ninth day of July in the year of our Lord 9ne thousand
seven hundred and seventy-eight, and in the third year of
the independence of America.
APPENDIX B.
THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATED
Pbeamble.^
We, the people of the United States, in order to form a more
perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, pro-
vide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and
secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do
ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of
America.
Abtiglb I. Legislative Department.*
Section /. Congress in General.
All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a
Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate
and House of Representatives.
Section II. House of Representatives.
1. The House of Representatives shall be composed of mem-
bers chosen every second year by the people of the several
States, and the electors in each State shall have the qualifica-
tions requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the
State legislature.
^ Compare this Preamble with Confed. Art. I. and III
2 Compare Art. I.. §§ i.-vii. with Confed. Art. V.
802 APPENDIX B.
2. No person shall be a BepresentatiTe who shall not have
attained the age of twenty-five years, and been seven years a
citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected,
be an inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.
8. Bepresentatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned
among the several States which may be included within this
Union, according to their respective numbers, which shall be
determined by adding to the whole number of free persons, in-
cluding those bound to service for a term of years, and exclud-
ing Indians not taxed, three fifths of all odier persons. The
actual enumeration shall be made within three years after the
first meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within
every subsequent term of ten years, in such manner as thej
shall by law direct. The number of Representatives shall not
exceed one for every thirty thousand, but each State shall have
at least one Representative; and until such enumeration shall
be made, the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to choose
three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode Island and Providence Planta-
tions one, Connecticut five, New York six, New Jersey four,
Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia tent
North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and Georgia three.
4. When vacancies happen in the representation from anj
State, the executive authority thereof shall issue writs of election
to fill such vacancies.
5. The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker
and other officers, and shall have the sole power of impeach-
ment.
Section III. Senate,
1. The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two
Senators from each State, chosen by the legislature thereof, for
six years ; and each Senator shall have one vote.
2. Immediately after they shall be assembled in consequence
of the first election, they shall be divided as equally as may be
into three classes. The seats of the Senators of the first class
diall be vacated at the expiration of the second year ; of the
second class, at the expiration of the fourth year, and of the
third class, at the expiration of the sixth year, so that one third
may be chosen every second year; and if vacancies happen by
resignation or otherwise during the recess of the legislature of
any State, the executive thereof may make temporary appoint-
ments until the next meeting of the legislature, which shall then
fill such vacancies.
THE CONSTITUTION. SOS
S. No person shall be a Senator who shall not hare attained
to the age of thirty years, and been nine years a citizen of the
United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabit-
ant of that State for which he shall be chosen.
4. The Vice-President of the United States shall be President
of the Senate, but sliall hare no rote, unless they be equally
divided.
5. The Senate shall choose their other officers, and also a
President pro tempore in the absence of the Vice-President, or
when he shall exercise the office of President of the United
States.
6. The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeach-
ments. When sitting for that purpose, they shall be on oath or
affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried,
the Chief Justice shall preside: and no person shall be convicted
without the concurrence of two thirds of the members present.
7. Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend further
than to removal from office, and disqualification to hold and
enjoy' any office of honour, trust, or profit under the United
States; but the party convicted shall, nevertheless, be liable
and subject to indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment, ac-
cording to law.
Section IV. Both Houses,
1. The times, places, and manner of holding elections for
Senators and Representatives shall be prescribed in each State
by the legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time
by law make or alter such regulations, except as to the places
of choosing Senators.
2. The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year,
and such meeting shall be on the first Monday in December,
unless they shall by law appoint a different day.
Section V. The Houses Separately.
1. Each house shall be the judge of the elections, returns, and
qualifications of its own members, and a majority of each shall
constitute a quorum to do business; but a smaller number may
adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the
attendance of absent members, in such manner, and under such
penalties, as each house may provide.
2. Each house may determine the rules of its proceedings,
punish its members for disorderly behaviour, and with the con-
currence of two thirds, expel a member.
804 APPENDIX B.
S. Each house shall keep a joomal of its proceedings, and
from tiine to time publish the same, excepting sach parts as may
in their judgment require secrecj, and the yeas and nays of the
members of either house on any question shall, at the desire of
one fifth of those present, be entered on the joumaL
4. Neither house, during the session of Congress, shall, with-
out the consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days,
nor to any other place than that in which the two houses shall
be sitting.
Section VI. Privileges and Disabilities of Members.
1. The Senators and Bepresentatiyes shall receive a compen-
sation for their services, to be ascertained by law and paid oat
of the Treasury of the United States. They shall, in all cases
except treason, felony, and breach of the peace, be privileged
from arrest during their attendance at the session of their re-
spective houses, and in going to and returning from the same ;
and for any speech or debate in either house they shall not be
questioned in any other place.
2. No Senator or Representative shall, during the time for
which he was elected, be appointed to any civil office under the
authority of the United States, which shall have been created,
or the emoluments whereof shall have been increased during
such time; and no person holding any office under the United
States shall be a member of either house during his continuance
in office.
Section VII. Mode of Passing Laws.
1. All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of
Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with
amendments as on other bills.
2. £very bill which shall have passed the House of Repre-
sentatives and the Senate shall, before it become a law, be pre-
sented to the President of the United States; if he approve he
shall sign it, but if not he shall return it, with his objections, to
that bouse in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the
objections at large on their journal and proceed to reconsider
it. If after such reconsideration two thirds of that house shall
agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objec*
tions, to the other house, by which it shall likewise be recon-
sidered, and if approved by two thirds of that house it shall
become a law. But in all such cases the votes of both houses
shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the
THE CONSTITUTION. 805
persons voting for and against the bill shall be entered on the
journal of each house respectively. If any bill shall not be re-
turned by the President within ten days (Sundays excepted)
after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be a
law, in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress
by their adjournment prevent its return, in which case it shall
not be a law.
3. Every order, resolution, or vote to which the concurrence
of the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary
(except on a question of adjournment) shall be presented to the
President of the United States; and before the same shall take
effect, shall be approved by him, or being disapproved by him,
shall be repassed by two thirds of the Senate and House of
Representatives, according to the rules and limitations pre-
scribed in the case of a bill.
Section VIIL Powers granted to Congress.^
The Congress shall have power :
1. To lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, to
pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general *
welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts, and ex-
cises shall be uniform throughout the United States;
2. To borrow money on the credit of the United States;
3. To regulate commerce with foreign nations and among the
several States, and with the Indian tribes;
4. To establish an uniform rule of naturalization, and uni-
form laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United
States;
6. To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign
coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures;
6. To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the secu-
rities and current coin of the United States;
7. To establish post-offices and post-roads;
8. To promote the progress of science and useful arts by se-
curing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive
right to their respective writin<;s and discoveries;
9. To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court;
10. To define and punish piracies and felonies committed on
the high seas and offenses against the law of nations;
1 Compare §§ viii. and ix. with Confed. Art. IX. ; clause 1 of § viii.
with Confed. Art. VIH.; and claoae 12 of § viii. with Confed. Art.
vn.
806 APPENDIX B.
11. To declare war, grant letters of marqae and reprisal, and
make roles concerning captures on land and water;
12. To raise and support armies, bat no appropriation of
money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years;
18. To provide and maintain a navy;
14. To make roles for the government and regulation ol the
land and naval forces.
15. To provide for calling forth the ndlitia to execute the
laws of the Union, suppress insorrections, and repel invasions;
16. To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the
militia, and for governing soch part of them as may be em-
ployed in the service of the United States, reserving to the
States respectively the appointment of the officers, and the
aothority of training the militia according to the discipline
prescribed by Congress;
17. To exercise exclosive legislation in all cases whatsoever
over soch district (not exceeding ten miles sqoare) as may, by
cession of particolar States and the acceptance of Congress, be-
come the seat of the Government of the United States, and to
exercise like aothority over all places porchased by the consent
of the legislatore of the State in which the same shall be, for
the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dockyards, and other
needfol boildings ; and
18. To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper
for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other
powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the
United States, or in any department or officer thereof.^
Section IX, Powers denied to the United States.
1 . The migration or importation of such persons as any of the
States now existing shall think proper to admit shall not be pro-
hibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight
hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such
importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person.
2. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be siu-
pended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public
safety may require it.
8. No bill of attainder or ex post facto law shall be passed.
4. No capitation or other direct tax shall be laid, unless in
1 This is the Elastic Clause in the interpretation of which arose the
original and- fundamental diyision of political parties. See aboTe^
pp. 245, 259.
THE CONSTITUTION. 807
proportion to the census or enumeration hereinbefore directed
to be taken.
5. No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from any
State.
6. No preference shall be given by any regulation of com-
merce or revenue to the ports of one State over those of an-
other; nor shall vessels bound to or from one State be obliged
to enter, clear, or pay duties in another.
7. No money shall be drawn from the Treasury but in con-
sequence of appropriations made by law; and a regular state-
ment and account of the receipts and expenditures of all public
money shall be published from time to time.
8. No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States;
and no person holding any office of profit or trust under them
shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present,
emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king,
prince, or foreign State.
Section X. Powers denied to the States.^
1. No State shall enter into any treaty, alliance, or confedera-
tion; grant letters of marque and reprisal; coin money; emit
bills of credit ; make anything but gold and silver coin a tender
in payment of debts; pass ^ny bill of attainder, ex post facto
law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts, or grant any
title of nobility.
2. No State shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any
imposts or duties on imports or exports, except what may be
absolutely necessary for executing its inspection laws ; and the
net produce of all duties and imposts, laid by any State on im-
ports or exports, shall be for the use of the Treasury of the
United States ; and all such laws shall be subject to the revision
and control of the Congress.
S. No State shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any
duty of tonnage, keep troops or ships of war in time of peace,
enter into any agreement or compact with another State or with
a foreign power, or engage in war, unless actually invaded or in
such imminent danger as will not admit of delay.
^ Compare § x. with Confed. Art. VL
808 APPENDIX B.
Abticlb n. Executive Department.^
Section /. President and Vice-PresidenU
1. The executive power shall be vested in a President of the
United States of America. He shall hold his office during the
term of four years, and together with the Vice-Ft^sident, chosen
for the same term, be elected as follows :
2. Each State shall appoint, in such manner as the legislature
thereof may direct, a number of electors, equal to the whole
number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may
be entitled in the Congress ; but no Senator or Representative,
or person holding an office of trust or profit under the United
States, shall be appointed an elector.
3. [The electors shall meet in their respective States and vote
by ballot for two persons, of whom one at least shall not be an
inhabitant of the same State with themselves. And they shall
make a list of all the persons voted for, and of the number of
votes for each ; which list they shall sign and certify, and trans-
mit sealed to the seat of government of the United States,
directed to the President of the Senate. The President of the
Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Rep-
resentatives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then
be counted. The person having the greatest number of votes
shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the
whole number of electors appointed ; and if there be more than
one who have such majority, and have an equal number of
votes, then the House of Representatives shall immediately
choose by ballot one of them for President ; and if no person
have a majority, then from the five highest on the list the said
House shall in like manner choose the President. But in
choosing the President the votes shall be taken by States, the
representation from each State having one vote ; a quorum for
this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two
thirds of the States, and a majority of all the States shall be
necessary to a choice. In every case, after the choice of the
President, the person having the greatest number of votes of the
electors shall be the Vice-President. But if there should remain
two or more who have equal votes, the Senate shall choose from
them by ballot the Vice-President.] *
1 Compare Art. H. with Confed. Art. X.
' This clause of the Constitation has been amended. See Amend-
ments, Art. XII.
THE CONSTITUTION. 809
4. The Congress may determine tibe time of choosing the
electors and the day on which they shall give their votes, which
day shall be the same throughout the United States.
5. No person except a natural- born citizen, or a citizen of the
United States at the time of the adoption of this Constitution,
shall be eligible to the office of President ; neither shall any
person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to
the age of thirty-five years, and been fourteen years a resident
within the United. States.
6. In case of the removal of the President from office, or of
his death, resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and
duties of the said office, the same shall devolve on the Vice-
President, and the Congress may by law provide for the case of
removal, death, resignation, or inability, both of the President
and Vice-President, declaring what officer shall then act as
President, and such officer shall act accordingly until the dis-
ability be removed or a President shall be elected.
7. The President shall, at stated times, receive for his services
a compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished
during the period for which he may have been elected, and he
shall not receive within that period any other emolument from
the United States or any of them.
8. Before he enter on the execution of his office he shall take
the following; oath or affirmation :
** I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute
the office of President of the United States, and will to the best
of my ability preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of
the United States."
Section Ih Powers of the President,
1. The President shall be Commander-in-chief of the Army
and Navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several
States when called into the actual service of the United States ;
he may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in
each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to
the duties of their respective offices, and he shall have power to
grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United
States, except in cases of impeachment.
2. He shall have power, by and with the advice and consent
of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two thirds of the Sen-
ators present concur ; and he shall nominate, and, by and with
the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ambassar
810 APPENDIX B.
dors, other public ministers and consols, judges of the Sopreme
Court, and all other officers of the United States, whose appoint-
ments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall
be established by law ; but the Congress may by law vest the
appointment of such inferior officers, as they think proper, in
the President alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of de-
partments.
8. The President shall have power to fill up all vacancies that
may happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting com-
missions which shall expire at the end of their next session.
Section III. Duties of the President
He shall from time to time give to the Congress information
of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consideration
such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient ; he
may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both houses, or either
of them, and in case of disagreement between them with re-
spect to the time of adjournment, he may adjourn them to
such time as he shall think proper ; he shall receive ambassa-
dors and other public ministers ; he shall take care that the
laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers
of the United States.
Section IV, Impeachment,
The President, Vice-President, and all civil officers of the
United States shall be removed from office on impeachment
for and conviction of treason, bribery, or other high crimes and
misdemeanors.
Article III. Judicial Department.*
Section I, United States Courts,
The judicial power of the United States shall be vested in
one Supreme Courts and in such inferior courts as the Congress
may from time to time ordain and establish. The judges, both
of the supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices dar-
ing good behaviour, and shall, at stated times, receive for their
services a compensation which shall not be diminished during
their continuance in office.
^ Compare Art. III. with the first three paragraphs of Confed.
Art. IX.
THE CONSTITUTION. 811
Section II. Jurisdiction of the United States Courts.
1. The judicial power shall extend to all cases, in law and
equity, arising under this Constitution, the laws of the United
States, and treaties made, or which shall he made, under their
authority ; to all cases affecting ambassadors, other public minis-
ters, and consuls ; to all cases of admiralty and maritime juris-
diction ; to controversies to which the United States shall be a
party; to controversies between two or more States; between a
State and citizens of another State ; between citizens of differ-
ent States ; between citizens of the same State claiming lands
under grants of different States, and between a State, or the citi-
zens thereof, and foreign States, citizens, or subjects.^
2. In all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers
and consuls, and those in which a State shall be a party, the Su-
preme Court shall have original jurisdiction. In all the other
cases before mentioned the Supreme Court shall have appellate
jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with such exceptions, and
under such regulations as the Congress shall make.
8. The trial of all crimes, except in cases of impeachment,
shall be by jury; and such trial shall be held in the State where
the said crimes shall have been committed ; but when not com-
mitted within any State, the trial shall be at such place or places
as the Congress may by law have directed.
Section III. Treason.
1. Treason against the United States shall consist only in
levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving
ihem aid and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason
unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act.
or on confession in open court.
2. The Congress shall have power to declare the punishmeni
of treason, but no attainder of treason shall work corruption of
blood or forfeiture except during the life of the person attainted.
Abticlb rv. The States akd the Federal Govebn-
MENT.*
Section I. State Records,
Full faith and credit shall be given in each State to the public
' This danse has been amended. See Amendments, Art. XI.
* Compare Art. FV. with Confed Art. IV.
812 APPENDIX B.
acts, records, and judicial proceedings of eyery other State.
And the Congress may by general laws prescribe the manner in
which such acts, records, and proceedings shall be proved, and
the effect thereof.
Section II. Privileges of Citizens, etc,
1. The citizens of each State shall be entitled to all prlYileges
and iitamunities of citizens in the several States.
2. A person charged in any State with treason, felony, or
other crime, who shall flee from justice, and be found in another
State, shall, on demand of the executive authority of the State
from which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State
having jurisdiction of the crime.
3. No person held to service or labour in one State, under the
laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any
law or regulation therein, be discharged from such service or
labour, but shall be delivered up on claim of the party to whom
such service or labour may be due.^
Section III, New States and Territories.*
1. New States may be admitted by the Congress into this
Union ; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the
jurisdiction of any other State ; nor any State be formed by the
junction of two or more States or parts of States, without the
consent of the legislatures of the States concerned as well as of
the Congress.
2. The Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all
needful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other
property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this
Constitution shall be so construed as to prejudice any claims of
the United States or of any particular State.
Section IV. Guarantee to the States,
The United States shall guarantee to every State in this
Union a republican form of government, and shall protect each
of them against invasion, and on application of the legislature,
or of the executive (when the legislature cannot be convened),
against domestic violence.
1 This clause has been cancelled by Amendment TCTTT., which abot
ishes slavery.
^ Compare § iii. with Confed. Art. XL
THE CONSTITUTION. 818
Abtiole Y. Poweb of Amendment.^
The Congress, whenever two thirds of both houses shall deem
it necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, or,
on the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the several
States, shall call a convention for proposing amendments, which
in either case shall be valid to all intents and purposes as part
of this Constitution, when ratified by the legislatures of three
fourths of the several States, or by conventions in three fourths
thereof, as the one or the other mode of ratification may be pro-
posed by the Congress, provided that no amendments which
may be made prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and
eight shall in any manner affect the first and fourth clauses in
the ninth section of the first article; and that no State, without
its consent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate.
Article VI. Public Debt, Supremacy of the Consti-
tution, Oath of Office, Religious Test.
1. All debts contracted and engagements entered into, before
the adoption of this Constitution, shall be as valid against the
United States under this Constitution as under the confedera-
tion.* «k«
2. This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which
shall be made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties made, or
which shall be made, under the authority of the United States,
shall be the supreme law of the land ; and the judges in every
State shall be bound thereby, anything in the Constitution or
laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding.
8. The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and
the members' of the several State legislatures, and all executive
and judicial officers both of the United States and of the several
States, shall be bound by oath or affirmation to support this
Constitution ; but no religious test shall ever be required as
a qualification to any office or public trust under the United
States.^
Abticle VIL Ratification of the Constitution.
The ratification of the conventions of nine States shall be
1 Compare Art. V. with Confed. Art. XIII.
* Compare clause 1 with Confed. Art. XIL
* Compare clauses 2 and 3 with Confed. Art XIII. and addendum,
"And whereas/' etc.
814 APPENDIX &
sofficieiit for the eghtWiahment of this Constitiitioii between the
States 80 ratifyiiig tlie smine.
Done in conTentkm bj the onanimoos consent of the States
present,^ the seyenteenth day of September, in the year of
oor Lord one thousand seren hundred and eighty-seven,
and of the Independence of the United States of America
the twelfth. In witness whereof, we have hereunto sub-
scribed oor names.
George Washington, President, and Deputy from Virginia.
New Haxpshibe — Jdbn Langdon, Nicholas Gilman.
Massachusetts — Nathaniel Gorham, Rufus'King.
CoNKKCTicuT — William Samuel Johnson, Roger Sherman.
New York — Alexander Hamilton.
•New Jersey — William Livingston, David Brearly, William
Patterson, Jonathan Dayton. #
PsNNSTLVANiA — Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Mifflin, Robert
Morris, George Clymer, Thomas Fitzsimons, Jared Ingersoll,
James Wilson, Gonvemeur Morris.
Delaware — George Read, Gunning Bedford, Jr., John Dick-
inson, Richard Bassett, Jacob Broom.
MARYLAND — James McHenry, Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer,
Daniel CarrolL
Virginia — John Blair , James Madison, Jr.
North Carolina — William Blount, Richard Dobbs Spaight,
Hugh Williamson.
South Carolina — John Rutledge, Charles Cotesworth Pinck-
ney, Charles Pinckney, Pierce Butler.
Georgia — William Few, Abraham Baldwin.
Attest : William Jackson, Secretary*
AMENDMENTS.^
Article I.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment oi
religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging
the freedom of speech or of the press; or the right of the people
^ Rhode Island sent no delegates to the Federal Convention.
* Amendments L to X. were proposed hy Congress, Sept. 25, 178^
and declared in force Dec 15, 1791.
THE CONSTITUTION. 315
peaceably to assemble, and to petition the goyemment for a
redress of grievances.
Article U.
A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a
free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall
not be infringed.
Article III.
No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house
without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a
manner to be prescribed by law.
Article IV.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses,
papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures,
shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue but upon prob-
able cause, supported by oath or afiBrmation, and particularly
describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to
be seized.
Article Y.
No person shall be held to answer for a capital or otherwise
infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a
grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces,
or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public
danger ; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to
be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb ; nor shall be compelled
in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be de-
prived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law ;
nor shall private property be taken for public use without just
compensation.
Article VI.
In all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy the right
to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state
and district wherein the crime shall have been committed,
which district shall have been previously ascertained by law,
and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation ;
to be confronted with the witnesses against him ; to have com-
pulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favour, and to have
the assistance of counsel for his defence.
Article VII.
In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall
S16 APPENDIX B.
ezoped twentj dollan, Uie right of trial bj jmy shall be pre-
served, and no fact tried bj a jury shall be otherwise reexam-
ined in any court of the United States, than according to thfi
rules of the common law.
Article VllL
JCxcessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines im-
posed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
Article IX.
The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall
not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the
people.
Article X.^
The powers not delegated to the United States by the CSon-
stitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the
States respectively or to the people.
Article XI.>
The judicial power of the United States shall not be con-
strued to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or
prosecuted against one of the United States by citizens of
another State, or by citizens or subjects of any foreign State.
Article XIL*
1. The electors shall meet in their respective States and vote
by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at
least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same State with them-
selves ; they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as
President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice-
President, and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted
for as President and of all persons voted for as Vice-President,
and of the number of votes for each ; which lists they shall sign
and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government
of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate.
The President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate
and House of Representatives, open all the certificates and the
1 Compare Amendment X. with Confed. Art. II.
^ Proposed by Congress March 5, 1794, and declared in force Jan.
8, 1798.
* Proposed by Congress Dec. 12, 1803, and declared in force Sept
25,1804.
THE CONSTITUTION. 817
votes shall then be counted. The person baring the greatest
number of votes for President shall be the President, if such
number be a majority of the whole number of electors appointed;
and if no person have such majorit}^, then from the persons hav-
ing the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those
voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall
choose immediately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing
the President the votes shall be taken by States, the represen-
tation from each State having one vote; a quorum for this pur-
pose shall consist of a member or members from two thirds of
the States, and a majority of all the States shall be necessary to
a choice. And if the House of Representatives shall not choose
a President whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon
them, before the fourth day of March next following, then the
Vice-President shall act as President, as in the case of the death
or other constitutional disability of the President.
2. The person having the greatest number of votes as Vice-
President shall be the Vice-President, if such number be a ma-
jority of the whole number of electors appointed; and if no
person have a majority, then from the two highest numbers on
the list the Senate shall choose the Vice-President; a quorum
for the purpose shall consist of two thirds of the whole number
of Senators, and a majority of the whole number shall be neces-
sary to a choice.
S. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of
President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the
United States.
Article XIH.*
1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a
punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly
convicted, shall exist within the United States or any place
subject to their jurisdiction. .
2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appro-
priate legislation.
Article XIV.*
1. An persons bom or naturalized in the United States, and
1 Proposed by Congress Feb. 1, 1865, and declared in force Dec.
18, 1865.
s Proposed by Congress June 16. 1866, and declared in force Jolj
88, 1868.
818 APPENDIX B.
subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United
States and of die State wherein they reside. No State shall
make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or
immunities of citizens of jJie United States; nor shall any
State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without
dne process of law ; nor deny to any person within its jurisdic-
tion the equal protection of the laws.
2. Representatives shall be apportioned among the several
States according to their respective numbers, counting the
whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not
taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the
choice of electors for President and Vice-President of the United
States, Representatives in Congress, the executive and judicial
officers of a State, or the members of the legislature thereof, is
denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being
twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in
any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other
crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in
the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall
bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years ol
age in such State.
8. No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Con-
gress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any
office, civil or military, under the United States or under any
State, who, having previously taken an oath as a member of
Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member
of any State legislature; or as an executive or judicial officer of
any State, to support the Constitution of the United States,
shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the
same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But
Congress may, by a vote of two thirds of each house, remove
such disabilitv.
4. The validity of the public debt of the United States, au-
thorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pen-
sions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or
rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United
States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation
incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United
States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave;
but all such debts, obligations, and claims shall be held illegal
and void.
5. The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate
legislation, the provisions of this article.
THE CONSTITUTION. 819
Article XV.*
1. The right of citizens of the United States to rote shall not
be denied or abridged by the United States or bj any State on
account of race, colour, or previous condition of servitude.
2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by
appropriate legislation.
FRANKLIN'S SPEECH ON THE LAST DAY OF
THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION.^
Monday, September 1 7. In Convention — The engrossed
Constitution being read, Doctor Franklin rose with a speech in
his hand, which he had reduced to writing for his own con-
venience, and which Mr. Wilson read in the words following:
'^Mr. President: I confess that there are several parts of
this Constitution which I do not at present approve, but I am not
sure I shall never approve them. For, having lived long, I have
experienced many instances of being obliged by better informa-
tion, or fuller consideration, to change opinions even on impor-
tant subjects which I once thought right, but found to bo
otherwise. It is therefore that, the older I grow, the more apt
I am to doubt my own judgment, and to pay more respect to
the judgment of others. Most men, indeed, as well as most
sects in religion, think themselves in possession of all truth, and
that wherever others differ from them it is so far error. Steele,
a Protestant, in a dedication tells the Pope that the only differ-
ence between our churches, in their opinions of the certainty of
their doctrines, is, * the Church of Rome is infallible, and the
Church of England is never in the wrong.' But though many
private persons think almost as highly of their own infallibility
as of that of their sect, few express it so naturally as a certain
French lady who, in a dispute with her sister, said, * I don't know
how it happens, sister, but I meet with nobody but myself that
is always in the right — U n^y a que moi qui a toujours raison,*
In these sentiments, sir, I agree to this Constitution, with all its
^ Proposed by Congress Feb. 26, 1869, and declared in force March
30, 1870.
2 From Madison's Joumalt in Eliot's Debates, vol. v. p. 554.
320 APPENDIX B.
faults, if they are such, because I think a Greneral Government
necessary for us, and there is no form of government but what
may be a blessing to the people if well administered; and believe
further, that this is likely to be well administered for a coarse
of years, and can only end in despotism, as other forms have
done before it, when the people shall become so corrupted as to
need despotic government, being incapable of any other. I
doubt, too, whether any other Convention we can obtain may be
able to make a better Constitution. For when you assemble a
number of men to have the advantage of their joint wisdom, yoa
inevitably assemble with those men all their prejudices, their
passions, their errors of opinion, their local interests, and their
selfish views. From such an assembly can a perfect production
be expected? It, therefore, astonishes me, sir, to find this sys-
tem approaching so near to perfection as it does: and I think it
will astonish our enemies, who are waiting with confidence to hear
that our councils are confounded, like those of the builders of
Babel, and that our States are on the point of separation, only to
meet hereafter for the purpose of cutting one another's throats.
Thus I consent, sir, to this Constitution because I expect no bet-
ter, and because I am not sure that it is not the best. The opin-
ions I have had of its errors I sacrifice to the public good. I have
never whispered a syllable of them abroad. Within these walls
they were born and here they shall die. If every one of us, in
returning to our constituents, were to report the objections he
has had to it, and endeavour to gain partisans in support of them,
we might prevent its being generally received, and thereby lose
all the salutary effects and great advantages resulting naturally
in our favour among foreign nations as well as among ourselves,
from our real or apparent unanimity. Much of the strength
and efficiency of any government, in procuring and securing
happiness to the people, depends on opinion — on the general
opinion of the goodness of the government as well as of the wis-
dom and integrity of its governors. I hope, therefore, that for
our own sakes, as a part of the people, and for the sake of pos-
terity, we shall act heartily and unanimously in recommending
this Constitution (if approved by Congress and confirmed by the
Conventions) wherever our influence may extend, and turn our
future thoughts and endeavours to the means of havino^ it well
administered. On the whole, sir, I cannot help expressing a
wish that every member of the Convention who may still have
objections to it would, with me, on this occasion doubt a little of
THE CONSTITUTION. ' 321
his own infallibility, and, to make manifest our unanimity, put
his name to this instrument."
He then moved that the Constitution be signed by the mem-
bers, and offered the following as a convenient form, viz.:
<< Done in Convention by the unanimous consent of the States
present the seventeenth of September, etc. In witness whereof
we have hereunto subscribed our names." Tliis ambiguous form
had been drawn up by Mr. Grouverneur Morris, in order to
gain the dissenting members, and put into the hands of Doctor
Franklin, that it might have the better chance of success.
[Considerable discussion followed, Randolph and Gerry stating
their reasons for refusinc^ to siorn the Constitution. Mr. Hamil-
ton expressed his anxiety that every member should sign. A
few characters of consequence, he said, by opposing or even re-
fusing to sign the Constitution, might do infinite mischief by
kindling the latent sparks that lurk under an enthusiasm in
favour of the Convention which may soon subside. No man's
ideas were more remote from the plan than his own were known
to be; but is it possible to deliberate between anarchy and con-
vulsion on one side, and the chance of good to be expected
from the plan on the other? This discussion concluded, the
Convention voted that its journal and other papers should be
retained by the President, subject to the order of Congress,]
The members then proceeded to sign the Constitution as finally
amended. The Constitution being signed by all the members
except Mr. Randolph, Mr. Mason, and Mr. (Jerry, who declined
giving it the sanction of their names, the Convention dissolved
itself by an adjournment sine die.
Whilst the last members were signing, Doctor Franklin, look-
ing towards the President's chair, at the back of which a rising
sun happened to be painted, observed to a few members near
him that painters had found it difficult to distinguish in tbeir
art a rising from a setting sun. I have, said he, often and often,
in the course of the session, and the vicissitudes of my hopes and
fears as to its issue, looked at that behind the President without
being able to tell whether it was rising or setting; but now, at
length, I have the happiness to know that it is a rising, and not
a setting, sun.
322 APPENDIX a
APPENDIX C.
BiAGNA CHABTA,!
Ob the Gbbat Chabtbr of Kino John, gbantbd Juhb 15, ▲. d.
1215.
John, by the Grace of Grod, King of England, Lord of Ire-
land, Duke of Normandy, Aqultaine, and Count of Anjou, to his
Archbishops, Bishops, Abbots, Earls, Barons, Justiciaries, For-
esters, Sheriffs, Goyemors, Officers, and to all Bailiffs, and hb
faithful subjects, greeting. Enow ye, that we, in the presence
of Grod, and for the salyation of our soul, and the soids of all
our ancestors and heirs, and unto the honour of Grod and the
advancement of Holy Church, and amendment of our Realm,
by advice of our venerable Fathers, Stephen, Archbishop of
Canterbury, Primate of all England and Cardinal of the Holy
Roman Church ; Henry, Archbishop of Dublin ; William, ci
London ; Peter, of Winchester ; Jocelin of Bath and Glaston-
bury ; Hugh, of Lincoln ; Walter, of Worcester ; William, of
Coventry : Benedict, of Rochester — Bishops : of Master Pan-
dulph, Sub-Deacon and Familiar of our Lord the Pope ; Brother
Aymeric, Master of the Knights-Templars in England ; and of
the noble Persons, William Marescall, Earl of Pembroke ; Wil-
liam, Earl of Salisbury ; William, Earl of Warren ; William,
Earl of Arundel; Alan de Galloway, Constable of Scotland;
Warin FitzGerald, Peter FitzHerbert, and Hubert de Burgh,
Seneschal of Poitou; Hugh de Neville, Matthew FitzHerbert,
Thomas Basset, Alan Basset, Philip of Albiney, Robert de Rop-
pell, John Mareschal, John FitzHugh, and others, our liegemen,
have, in the first place, granted to God, and by this our present
Charter confirmed, for us and our heirs for ever : —
1. That the Church of England shall be free, and have her
whole rights, and her liberties inviolable ; and we will have
them so observed, that it may appear thence that the freedom
of elections, which is reckoned chief and indispensable to the
English Church, and which we granted and confirmed by our
Charter, and obtained the confirmation of the same from our
Lord the Pope Innocent HI., before the discord between us and
our barons, was granted of mere free will ; which Charter we
^ I have, by permission, reproduced the Old South Leaflet, with iti
notes, etc., in fall.
MAGNA CHARTA. 828
shall observe, and we do will it to be faithfully observed by our
heirs for ever.
2. We also have granted to all the freemen of our kingdom,
for us and for our heirs for ever, all the underwritten liberties, to
be had and holden by them and their heirs, of us and our heirs
for ever : If any of our earls, or barons, or others, who hold of
us in chief by military service, shall die, and at the time of his
death his heir shall be of full age, and owe a relief, he shall have
his inheritance by the ancient relief — that ip to say, the heir or
heirs of an earl, for a whole earldom, by a hundred pounds ; the
heir or heirs of a baron, for a whole barony, by a hundred
pounds ; the heir or heirs of a knight, for a whole knight's fee,
by a hundred shillings at most ; and whoever oweth less shall
give less, according to the ancient custom of fees.
3. But if the heir of any such shall be under age, and shall
be in ward, when he comes of age he shall have his inheritance
without relief and without fine.
4. The keeper of the land of such an heir being under age,
shall take of the land of the heir none but reasonable issues,
reasonable customs, and reasonable services, and that without
destruction and waste of his men and his goods ; and if we
commit the custody of any such lands to the sherifiE, or any
other who is answerable to us for the issues of the land, and he
shall make destruction and waste of the lands which he hath in
custody, we will take of him amends, and the land shall be
committed to two lawful and discreet men of that fee, who shall
answer for the issues to us, or to him to whom we shall assign
them ; and if we sell or give to any one the custody of any such
lands, and he therein make destruction or waste, he shall lose
the same custody, which shall be committed to two lawful and
discreet men of that fee, who shall in like manner answer to us
as aforesaid.
5. But the keeper, so long as he shall have the custody of the
land, shall keep up the houses, parks, warrens, ponds, mills, and
other things pertaining to the land, out of the issues of the same
land ; and shall deliver to the heir, when he comes of full age,
his whole land, stocked with ploughs and carriages, according as
the time of wainage shall require, and the issues of the land can
reasonably bear.
6. Heirs shall be married without disparagement, and so thai
before matrimony shall be contracted, those who are near in
blood to the heir shall have notice.
824 APPENDIX C.
7. A widow, after the death of her husband, shall forthwith
and without difiBculty have her marriage and inheritance; nor
shall she give anything for her dower, or her marriage, or her
inlieritance, wliich her husband and she held at the day of his
death ; and she may remain in the mansion house of her hus-
band forty days after his death, within which time her dower
shall be assigned.
8. No widow shall be distrained to marry herself, so long as
she has a mind to live without a husband ; but yet she shall give
security that she will not marry without our assent, if she hold
of us ; or without the consent of the lord of whom she holds, if
she hold of another.
9. Neither we nor our bailiffs shall seize any land or rent for
any debt so long as the chattels of the debtor are sufficient to
pay the debt ; nor shall the sureties of the debtor be distrained
so long as the principal debtor has sufiQcient to pay the debt;
and if the principal debtor shall fail in the payment of the debt,
not having wherewithal to pay it, then the sureties shall answer
the debt ; and if they will they shall have the lands and rents of
the debtor, until they shall be satisfied for the debt which they
paid for him, unless the principal debtor can show himself ac-
quitted thereof against the said sureties.
10. If any one have borrowed anything of the Jews, more or
less, and die before the debt be satisfied, there shall be no inter-
est paid for that debt, so long as the heir is under age, of whom-
soever he may hold ; and if the debt falls into our hands, we
will only take the chattel mentioned in the deed.
11. And if any one shall die indebted to the Jews, his wife
shall have her dower and pay nothing of that debt ; and if the
deceased left children under age, they shall have necessaries
provided for them, according to the tenement of the deceased;
and out of the residue the debt shall be paid, saving, however,
the service due to the lords, and in like manner shall it be done
touching debts due to others than the Jews.
12. No scutage or aid ^ shall be imposed in our kingdom, unless
by the general council of our kingdom ; except for ransoming our
person, making our eldest son a knight, and once for marrying
^ In the time of the feudal system scutage was a direct tax in com-
mutation for military service ; aids were direct taxes paid hy the
tenant to his lord for ransoming his person if taken captive, and for
helping defray the expenses of knighting his eldest son and marrying
his eldest daughter.
MAGNA CHARTA, 826
our eldest daughter ; and for these there shall be paid no more
than a reasonable aid. In like manner it shall be concerning
the aids of the Citj of London.
13. And the City of London shall have all its ancient liberties
and free customs, as well by land as by water : furthermore, we
will and grant that all other cities and boroughs, and towns and
ports, shall have all their liberties and free customs.
14. And for holding the general council of the kingdom con-
cerning the assessment of aids, except in the three cases aforesaid^
and for the assessing ofsctUages, we shall cause to be summoned the
archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, and greater barons of the realm,
singly by our letters. And furthermore, we shall cause to be sum-
moned generally, by our sheriffs and bailiffs, all others who hold of
us in chief for a certain day, that is to say, forty days before their
meeting at least, and to a certain place ; and in all letters of such
summons toe will declare the cause of such summons. And sum-
mons being thus made, the business shall proceed on the day ap-
pointed, according to the advice of such as shall be present,
although aU that were summoned come not,
15. We will not for the future grant to any one that he may
take aid of his own free tenants, unless to ransom his body,
and to "make his eldest son a knight, and once to marry his
eldest daughter ; and for this there shall be only paid a reason-
able aid.
16. No man shall be distrained to perform more service for a
knight's fee, or other free tenement, than is due from thence.
17. Common pleas shall not follow our court, but shall be
holden in some place certain.
18. Trials upon the Writs of Novel Disseisin,^ and of Mort
d'ancestor,^ and of Darrein Presentment,* shall not be taken
but in their proper counties, and after this manner : We, or if
we should be out of the realm, our chief justiciary, will send
two justiciaries through every county four times a year, who^
with four knights of each county, chosen by the county, shall
hold the said assizes ^ in the county, on the day, and at the place
appointed.
^ Dispossession.
^ Death of the ancestor; that is, in cases of disputed succession to
land.
^ Last presentation to a benefice.
* The word Assise here means "an assembly of knights or other
substantial persons, held at a certain time and place where they sit
826 APPENDIX C.
19. And if any matters cannot be determined on the day ap-
pointed for holding the assizes in each coonty, so many of the
knights and freeholders as have been at the assizes aforesaid shall
stay to decide them as is necessary, according as there is more
or less business.
20. A freeman shall not be amerced for a small offence, bat
only according to the degree of the offence ; and for a great
crime according to the heinousness of it, saving to him his con-
tenement ; ^ and after the same manner a merchant, saving to
him his merchandise. And a villein shall be amerced after the
same manner, saving to him his wainage, if he falls under our
mercy ; and none of the aforesaid amerciaments shall be assessed
but by the oath of honest men in the neighbourhood.
21. Earls and barons shall not be amerced but by their peers,
and after the degree of the offence.
22. No ecclesiastical person shall be amerced for his lay
tenement, but according to the proportion of the others afore-
said, and not according to the value of his ecclesiastical bene-
fice.
28. Neither a town nor any tenant shall be distrained to make
bridges or embankments, unless that anciently and of right they
are bound to do it.
24. No sheriff, constable, coroner, or other our bailiffs, shall
hold « Pleas of the Crown." *
25. All counties, hundreds, wapentakes, and trethings, shall
stand at the old rents, without any increase, except in our
demesne manors.
26. If any one holding of us a lay fee die, and the sheriff, or
our bailiffs, show our letters patent of summons for debt which
the dead man did owe to us, it shall be lawful for the sheriff or
our bailiff to attach and register the chattels of the dead, found
upon his lay fee, to the amount of the debt, by the view of law-
ful men, so as nothing be removed until our whole clear debt be
paid ; and the rest shall be left to the executors to fulfil the tes-
tament of the dead ; and if there be nothing due from him to
with the Justice. ' Assisa ' or ' Assize ' is also tdiksn. for the court,
place, or time at which the writs of Assize are taken." — Thompsoti't
Notes,
^ '* That by which a person subsists and which is essential to hii
rank iu life."
^ These are suits conducted in the name of the Crown against crim-
inal offenders.
MAGNA CHARTA. 327
us, all the chattels shall go to the use of the dead, saying to his
wife and children their reasonable shares.^
27. If any freeman shall die intestate, his chattels shall be
distributed bj the hands of his nearest relations and friends, by
view of the Chorch, saving to every one his debts which the
deceased owed to him.
28. No constable or bailiff of ours shall take com or other
chattels of any man unless he presently give him money for it,
or hath respite of payment by the good-will of the seller.
29. No constable shall distrain any knight to give money for
castle-guard, if he himself will do it in his person, or by another
able man, in case he cannot do it through any reasonable cause.
And if we have carried or sent him into the army, he shall be
free from such guard for the time he shall be in the army by our
command.
30. No sheriff or bailiff of ours, or any other, shall take
horses or carts of any freeman for carriage, without the assent
of the said freeman.
31. Neither shall we nor our bailiffs take any man's timber
for our castles or other uses, unless by the consent of the owner
of the timber.
32. We will retain the lands of those convicted of felony only
one year and a day, and then they shall be delivered to the lord
of the fee.*
33. All kydells* (wears) for the time to come shall be put
down in the rivers of Thames and Medway, and throughout all
England, except upon the sea-coast.
^ A person's goods were divided into three parts, of which one went
to his wife, another to his heirs, and a third he was at liberty to dis-
pose of. If he had no child, his widow had half ; and if he had chil-
dren, but no wife, half was divided amongst them. These several
sums were called " reasonable shares." Through the testamentary
jurisdiction they gradually acquired, the clergy often contrived to get
into their own hands all the residue of the estate without paying the
debts of the estate.
3 All forfeiture for felony has been abolished by the 33 and 34 Vie,
c. 23. It seems to have originated in the destruction of the felon's
property being part of the sentence, and this " waste ** being com«
muted for temporary possession by the Crown.
* The purport of this was to prevent inclosures of common prop-
erty, or committing a " Purprestnre." These wears are now called
« kettles " or " kettle-nets " in Kent and Cornwall.
828 APPENDIX C.
84. The writ which is called prcBcipey for the future, shall not
be made out to any one, of any tenement, whereby a freeman
may lose his court.
85. There shall be one measure of wine and one of ale through
our whole reakn ; and one measure of com, that is to say, the
London quarter; and one breadth of dyed cloth, and russets, and
haberjeets, that is to say, two ells within the lists ; and it shall
be of weights as it is of measures.
86. Nothing from henceforth shall be given or taken for a wrk
of inquisition of life or linib, but it shall be granted freely^ and
not denied,^
87. If any do hold of us by fee-farm, or by socage, or by bur-
gage, and he hold also lands of any other by knight's service,
we will not have the custody of the heir or land, which is holden
of another man's fee by reason of that fee-farm, socage,^ or bur-
gage; neither will we have the custody of the fee-farm, or socage,
or burgage, unless knight's service was due to us out of the same
fee-farm. We will not have the custody of an heir, nor of any
land which he holds of another by knight's service, by reason of
any petty serjeanty • by which he holds of us, by the service of
paying a knife, an arrow, or the like.
88. No bailiff from henceforth shall put any man to his law^
upon his own bare saying, without credible witnesses to prove it
89. No freeman shall be taken or imprisoned^ or disseised^ or
outlawed, or banished, or any ways destroyed, nor will we pass
upon him, nor will we send upon him, unless by the lawful judg-
ment of his peers, or by the law of the land,
40. We wUl sell to no man, we wiU not deny to any man, either
justice or right,
41. All merchants shall have safe and secure conduct, to go
^ This important writ, or " writ concerning hatred and malice,*^
may have been tbe prototype of the writ of habeas corpus, and was
granted for a similar purpose.
2 "Socage" signifies lands held by tenure of performing certain
inferior offices in husbandry, probably from the old French word soc^
a plongh-share. #
^ The tenure of giving the king some small weapon of war in
acknowledgment of lauds held.
^ Equivalent to putting him to his oath. This alludes to the
Wager of Law, by which a defendant and his eleven supporters or
" compurgators *' could swear to his non-liability, and this amounted
to a verdict in his favour.
MAGNA CHART A. 829
out of, and to come into England, and to stay there and to pass
as well by land as by water, for buying and selling by the
ancient and allowed customs, without any unjust tolls; except
in time of war, or when they are of any nation at war with us.
And if there be found any such in our land, in the beginning of
the war, they shall be attached, without damage to their bodies
or goods, until it be known unto us, or our chief justiciary,
how our merchants be treated in the nation at war with us; and
if ours be safe there, the others shall be safe in our dominions.
42. It shall be lawful, for the time to come, for any one to go
out of our kingdom, and return safely and securely by land or
by water, saving his allegiance to us; unless in time of war, by
some short space, for the common benefit of the realm, except
prisoners and outlaws, according to the law of the land, and
people in war with us, and merchants who shall be treated as is
above mentioned.^
43. If any man hold of any escheat,^ as of the honour of Wal-
lingford, Nottingham, Boulogne, Lancaster, or of other escheats
which be in our hands, and are baronies, and die, his heir shall
give no other relief, and perform no other service to us than he
would to the baron, if it were in the baron's hand ; and we will
hold it after the same manner as the baron held it.
44. Those men who dwell without the forest from henceforth
shall not come before our justiciaries of the forest, upon com-
mon summons, but such as are impleaded, or are sureties for
any that are attached for something concerning the forest.*
45. We will not make any justices, constables, sheriffs, or
bailiffs, but of such as know the law of the realm and mean
duly to observe it.
46. All barons who have founded abbeys, which they hold by
charter from the kings of England, or by ancient tenure, shall
have the keeping of them, when vacant, as they ought to have*
^ The Crown has still techDically the power of confining subjects
within the kingdom by the writ " ne exeat regno/' though the use of
the writ is rarely resorted to.
^ The word escheat is derived from the French escheoir, to return
or happen, and signifies the return of an estate to a lord, either on
failure of tenant's issue or on his committing felony. The abolition
of feudal tenures by the Act of Charles II. (12 Charles II. c. 24)
rendered obsolete this part and many other parts of the Charter.
■ The laws for regulating the royal forests, and administering jus-
tice in respect of offences committed in their precincts, formed a large
part of the law.
880 APPENDIX C.
47. All forests that have been made forests in onr time shall
forthwith be disforested ; and the same shall be done with the
water-banks that have been fenced in by us in our time.
48. All eril customs concerning forests, warrens, foresters,
and warreners, sheriffs and their officers, water-banks and their
keepers, shall forthwith be inquired into in each county, hy
twelve sworn knights of the same county, chosen by creditable
persons of the same county; and within forty days after the said
inquest be utterly abolished, so as never to be restored : so as
we are first acquainted therewith, or our justiciary, if we should
not be in England.
49. We will immediately give up all hostages and charters
delivered unto us by our English subjects, as securities for their
keeping the peace, and yielding us faithful service.
50. We will entirely remove from their bailiwicks the rela-
tions of Grerard de Atheyes, so that for the future they shall
have no bailiwick in England; we will also remove Engelard de
Cygony, Andrew, Peter, and Gyon, from the Chancery; Gyon
de Cygony, GecSrey de Martyn, and his brothers; Philip Mark,
and his brothers, and his nephew, GeofiErey, and their whole
retinue.
51. As soon as peace is restored, we will send out of the
kingdom all foreign knights, cross-bowmen, and stipendiaries,
who are come with horses and arms to the molestation of our
people.
52. If any one has been dispossessed or deprived by us, with-
out the lawful judgment of his peers, of his lands, castles, liber-
ties, or right, we will forthwith restore them to him ; and if any
dispute arise upon this head, let the matter be decided by the
five-and-twenty barons hereafter mentioned, for the preservation
of the peace. And for all those things of which any person has,
without the lawful judgment of his peers, been dispossessed or
deprived, either by our father King Henry, or our brother King
Richard, and which we have in our hands, or are possessed by
others, and we are bound to warrant and make good, we shall
have a respite till the term usually allowed the crusaders; ex-
cepting those things about which there is a plea depending, or
whereof an inquest hath been made, by our order before we
undertook the crusade ; but as soon as we return from our expe-
dition, or if perchance we tarry at home and do not make our
expedition, we will immediately cause full justice to be adminis-
tered therein.
MAGNA CHART A. 381
53. The same respite we shall have, and in the same manner,
about administering justice, disafforesting or letting continue
the forests, which Henry our father, and our brother Richard,
have afforested ; and the same concerning the wardship of the
lands which are in another's fee, but the wardship of which we
have hitherto had, bj reason of a fee held of us bj knight's ser-
vice ; and for the abbeys founded in any other fee than our own,
in which the lord of the fee says he has a right ; and when we
return from our expedition, or if we tarry at home, and do not
make our expedition, we will immediately do full justice to all
the complainants in this behalf.
54. No man shall be taken or imprisoned upon the appeal ^ of
a woman, for the death of any other than her husband.
55. All unjust and illegal fines made by us, and all amercia-
ments imposed unjustly and contrary to the law of the land,
shall be entirely given up, or else be left to the decision of the
five-and-twenty barons hereafter mentioned for the preservation
of the peace, or of the major part of them, together with the
aforesaid Stephen, Archbishop of Canterbury, if he can be pres-
ent, and others whom he shall think fit to invite ; and if he can-
not be present, the business shall notwithstanding go on without
him ; but so that if one or more of the aforesaid five-and-twenty
barons be plaintiffs in the same cause, they shall be set aside as
to what concerns this particular affair, and others be chosen in
their room, out of the said five-and-twenty, and sworn by the
rest to decide the matter.
56. If we have disseised or dispossessed the Welsh of any
lands, liberties, or other things, without the legal judgment of
their peers, either in England or in Wales, they shall be imme-
diately restored to theiA ; and if any dispute arise upon this
head, the matter shall be determined in the Marches by the
judgment of their peers ; for tenements in England according
to the law of England, for tenements in Wales according to the
law of Wales, for tenements of the Marches according to the
law of the Marches : the same shall the Welsh do to us and our
subjects.
^ An Appecd here means an *' accasation." The appeal here men^
tioned was a suit for a penalty in which the plaintiff was a relation
who had suffered through a murder or manslaughter. One of the in-
cidents of this " Appeal of Death " was the Trial by Battle. These
Appeals and Trial by Battle were not abolished before the passing of
the Act 59 Geo. IIL, c. 46.
332 APPENDIX a
57. As for all those things of which a Welshman hath, with-
out the lawful judgment of his peers, heen disseised or deprived
of hy King Henry our father, or our brother King Richard, and
which we either have in our hands or others are possessed of,
and we are obliged to warrant it, we shall have a respite till
the time generally allowed the crusaders ; excepting those
things about which a suit is depending, or whereof an inquest
has been made by our order, before we undertook the crusade :
but when we return, or if we stay at home without perform-
ing our expedition, we will immediately do them full justice,
according to the laws of the Welsh and of the parts before
mentioned.
58. We will without delay dismiss the son of Llewellin, and
all the Welsh hostages, and release them from the engagements
they have entered into with us for the preservation of the
peace. *
59. We will treat with Alexander, King of Scots, concerning
the restoring his sisters and hostages, and his right and liber-
ties, in the same form and manner as we shall do to the rest
of our barons of England ; unless by the charters which we have
from his father, William, late King of Scots, it ought to be other-
wise ; and this shall be left to the determination of his peers in
our court.
60. All the aforesaid customs and liberties, which we have
granted to be holden in our kingdom, as much as it belongs to
us, all people of our kingdom, as well clergy as laity, shall ob-
serve, as far as they are concerned, towards their dependents.
61. And whereas, for the honour of God and the amendment
of our kingdom, and for the better quieting the discord that has
arisen between us and our barons, w^ have granted all these
things aforesaid ; willing to render them firm and lasting, we do
give and grant our subjects the underwritten security, namely
that the barons may choose five-and-twenty barons of the king-
dom, whom they think convenient ; who shall take care, with
all their might, to hold and observe, and cause to be observed^
the peace and liberties we have granted them, and by this our
present Charter confirmed in this manner ; that is to say, that
if we, our justiciary, our bailiffs, or any of our officers, shall in
any circumstance have failed in the performance of them to-
wards any person, or shall have broken through any of these
articles of peace and security, and the offence be notified to
four barons chosen out of the fiveand-twenty before mentioned.
MAGNA CHART A. 338
the said four barons shall repair to us, or our justiciary, if we
are out of the realm, and, laying open the grievance, shall
petition to have it redressed without delay : and if it be not re-
dressed by us, or if we should chance to be out of the realm,
if it should not be redressed by our justiciary within forty days,
reckoning from the time it has been notified to us, or to our
justiciary (if we should be out of the realm), the four barons
aforesaid shall lay the cause before the rest of the five-and-
twenty barons; and the said five-aqd- twenty barons, together
with the community of the whole kingdom, shall distrain and
distress us in all the ways in which they shall be able, by
seizing our castles, lands, possessions, and in any other manner
they can, till the grievance is redressed, according to their
pleasure ; saving harmless our own person, and the persons oi
our Queen and children ; and when it is redressed, they shall
behave to us as before. And any person whatsoever in the
kingdom may swear that he will obey the orders of the five-and-
twenty barons aforesaid in the execution of the premises, and
will distress us, jointly with them, to the utmost of his power ;
and we give public and free liberty to any one that shall please
to swear to this, and never will hinder any person from taking
the same oath.
62. As for all those of our subjects who will not, of their
own accord, swear to join the five-and-twenty barons in distrain-
ing and distressing us, we will issue orders to make them take
the same oath as aforesaid. And if any one of the five-and-
twenty barons dies, or goes out of the kingdom, or is hindered
any other way from carrying the things aforesaid into execution,
the rest of the said five-and-twenty barons may choose another
in his room, at their discretion, who shall be sworn in like man-
ner as the rest. In all things that are committed to the execution
of these five-and-twenty barons, if, when they are all assembled
together, they should happen to disagree about any matter, and
some of them, when summoned, will not or cannot come, what-
ever is agreed upon, or enjoined, by the major part of those
that are present shall be reputed as firm and valid as if all the
five-and-twenty had given their consent ; and the aforesaid five-
and-twenty shall swear that all the premises they shall faithfully
observe, and cause with all their power to be observed. And
we will procure nothing from any one, by ourselves nor by
another, whereby any of these concessions and liberties may be
revoked or lessened ; and if any such thing shall have been ob-
884 APPENDIX a
tained, let it be noil and vrnd ; neither will we ever make nse ci
it either by onrselyes or any other. And all the ill-will, indig-
nations, and rancours that have arisen between us and our snb-
jects, of the clergy and laity, from the first breaking out of the
dissensions between ns, we do f uUy remit and forgive : moreover,
all trespasses occasioned by the said dissensions, from Easter in
the sixteenth year of our reign till the resUmition of peace and
tranquillity, we hereby entirely remit to all, both clergy and laity,
and as far as in us lies dp fully forgive. We have, moreover,
caused to be made for them the letters patent testimonial of
Stephen, Lord Archbishop of Canterbury, Henry, Lord Arch-
bishqp of Dublin, and the bishops aforesaid, as also of Master
Fandulph, for the security and concessions aforesaid.
63. Wherefore we will and firmly enjoin, that the Church of
England be free, and that all men in our kingdom have and hold
all the aforesaid liberties, rights, and concessions, truly and
peaceably, freely and quietly, fuUy and wholly to themselves
and their heirs, of us and our heirs, in all things and places, for-
ever, as is aforesaid. It is also sworn, as well on our part as on
the part of the barons, that all the things aforesaid shall be
observed in good faith, and without evil subtilty. Given under
our hand, in the presence of the witnesses above named, and
many others, in the meadow called Runingmede, between
Windsor and Staines, the 15th day of June, in the 17th year
of our reign.
The translation here given is that published in Sheldon Amos's
work on The English ConsttttUton. The translation given by Sir £.
Creasy was chiefly followed in this, but it was collated with another
accurate translation by Mr. Richard Thompson, accompanying his
Historical Essay on Magna Charta, published in 1829, and also with
the Latin text. " The explanation of the whole Charter/' observes
Mr. Amos, " most be songht chiefly in detailed accounts of theFeodal
system in England, as explained in such works as those of Stubbs,
Hallam, and Blackstone. The scattered notes here introduced have
only for their purpose to elucidate the most unusual and perplexing
expressions. The Charter printed in the Statute Book is that issued
in the ninth year of Henry III., which is also the ono specially con-
firmed by the Charter of Edward I. The Charter of Henry m. dif-
fers in some (generally) insignificant points from that of John. The
most important difference is the omission in the later Charter of tha
14th and 15th Articles of John's Charter, by which the King is re-
stricted from levying aids beyond the three ordinary ones, without the
MAGNA CHART A 335
assent of the ' Common Council of the Kingdom/ and proyision is
made for sommoning it. This passage is restored bj Edward I.
Magna Charter has been solemnly confirmed upwards of thirty times."
See the chapter on the Great Charter, in Green's History of the Eng-
lish People, See also Stubbs's Documents Illustrative of English His-
tory, "The whole of the constitntional history of England," says
Stubbs, " is a commentary on this Charter, the illustration of which
must be looked for in the documents that precede and follow."
"CONFIRMATIO CHARTARUM" OF EDWARD I.
1297.
I. Edward, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of
Ireland, and Duke Guyan, to all those that these present letters
shall hear or see, greeting. Know ye tha,t we, to the honour of
God and of holy Church, and to tiie profit of our realm, have
granted for us and our heirs, that the Charter of Liberties and
the Charter of the Forest, which were made by common assent
of all the realm in the time of King Henry our father, shall be
kept in every point without breach. And we will that the same
Charters shall be sent under our seal as well to our justices of
the forest as to others, and to all sheriffs of shires, and to all our
other ofiScers, and to all our cities throughout the realm, together
with our writs in the which it shall be contained that they cause
the foresaid Charters to be published, and to declare to the
people that we have confirmed them in all points ; and that our
justices, sheriffs, mayors, and other ministers, which under us
have the laws of our land to guide, shall allow the said Charters
pleaded before them in judgment in all their points ; that is to
wit, the Great Charter as the common law, and the Charter of
the Forest according to the assize of the Forest, for the wealth
of 6ur realm. *
n. And we will that if any judgment be given from hence-
forth, contrary to the points of the Charters aforesaid, by the
justices or by any other our ministers that hold plea before them
against the points of the Charters, it shall be undone and holden
for naught.
m. And we will that the same Charters shall be sent under
our seal to cathedral churches throughout our realm, there to
remain, and shall be read before the people two times by the
year.
886 APPENDIX C.
IV. And that all archbishops and bishops shall pronounce the
sentence of great excommunication against all those that by
word, deed, or counsel do contrary to the foresaid Charters, or
that in any point break or undo them. And that the said curses
be twice a year denounced and published by the prelates afore-
said. And if the prelates or any of them be remiss in the de-
nunciation of the said sentences, the Archbishops of Canterbury
and York for the time being, as is fitting, shall compel and dis-
train them to make that denunciation in form aforesaid.
y. And for so much as divers people of our realm are in fear
that the aids and tasks which they have given to us beforetime
towards our wars and other business, of their own grant and
goodwill, howsoever they were made, might turn to a bondage
to them and their heirs, because they might be at another time
found in the rolls, and so likewise the prises taken throughoat
the realm by our ministers ; we have granted for us and our
heirs, that we shall not draw such aids, tasks, nor prises into a
custom, for anything that hath been done heretofore, or that may
be found by roll or in any other manner.
VI. Moreover we have granted for us and our heirs, as well
to archbishops, bishops, abbots, priors, and other folk of holy
Church, as also to earls, barons, and to all the commonalty of
the land, that for no business from henceforth will we take such
manner of aids, tasks, nor prises but by the common consent of
the realm, and for the common profit thereof, saving the ancient
aids and prises due and accustomed.
VII. And for so much as the more part of the commonalty of
the realm find themselves sore grieved with the matelote of wools,
that is to wit, a toll of forty shillings for every sack of wool, and
have made petition to us to release the same ; we, at their re-
quests, have clearly released it, and have granted for us and our
heirs that we shall not take such thing nor any other without
their common assent and goodwill ; 'saving to us and our heirs
the custom of wools, skins, and leather, granted before by the
commonalty aforesaid. In witness of which things we have
caused these our letters to be made patents. Witness Edward
our son, at London, the 10th day of October, the five-and-
twentieth of our reign.
And be it remembered that this same Charter, in the same
terms, word for word, was sealed in Flanders under the King's
Great Seal, that is to say, at Ghent, the 6th day of November,
MAGNA CHART A. 337
in the 52<li year of ihe reign of our aforesaid Lord ihe King,
and sent into England.
The words of this important document, from Professor Stnbbs's
translation, are given as the best explanation of the constitutional
position and importance of the Charters of John and Henry III. See
historical notice in Stubbs's Documents Illustrative of English History,
p. 477. This is far the most important of the numerous ratifications
of the Great Charter. Hallam calls it " that famous statute, inade-
quately denominated the Confirmation of the Charters, because it added
another pillar to our constitution, not less important than the Great
Charter itself." It solemnly confirmed the two Charters, the Charter
of the Forest (issued by Henry II. in 1217 — see text in Stubbs,
p. 338) being then considered as of equal importance with Magna
Charta itself, establishing them in all points as the law of the land;
but it did more. ** Hitherto the king's prerogative of levying money
by name of tallage or prise, from his towns and tenants in demesne,
had passed unquestioned. Some impositions, that especially pn the
export of wool, affected all the king's suljects. It was now the mo-
ment to enfranchise the people and give that security to private prop-
erty which Magna Charta had given to personal liberty.*' Edward's
statute binds the king never to take any of these ** aids, tasks, and
prises *^ in future, save by the common assent of the realm. Hence,
as Bowen remarks, the Confirmation of the Charters, or an abstract
of it under the form of a supposed statute de tallagio non concedendo
(see Stubbs, p. 487), was more frequently cited than any other enact-
ment by the parliamentary leaders who resisted the encroachments of
Charles I. The original of the Confirmatio Chartarum, which is in
Norman French, is still in existence, though considerably shriveled
by the fire which damaged so many of the Cottonian manuscripts in
1731.
THE GRANT OF THE GREAT CHARTER.
" An island in the Thames between Staines and Windsor had been
chosen as the place of conference : the King encamped on one bank,
while the barons covered the marshy fiat, still known by the name of
Runnymede, on the other. Their delegates met in the island be-
tween them, but the negotiations were a mere cloak to cover John's
purpose of unconditional submission. The Great Charter was dis-
cussed, agreed to, and signed in a single day. One copy of it still re-
mains in the British Museum, injured by age and fire, but with the
royal seal still hanging from the brown, shrivelled parchment. It is
impossible to gaze without reverence on the earliest monument of
English freedom which we can see with our own eyes and touch with
our own hands, the great Charter to which from i^ to age patriots
338 APPENDIX C.
hsf« looked Inck M tte bMis q€ English liberty. But in Itwlf tbe
Charter was no noreltT, nor did it cUim to erte Miah any new consti-
tatinnal prindpka. Tlie Charter of Heniy the First fcnrnied the bans
of the wh(^ and the additiaQB to it are for the most part formal rec-
og;iiitiaBs of the jodidal and administnitiTe changes introdnoed by
Henry the Second. Bat the Tagne expressioiis of the older charten
were now exchanged for precise and elaborate prorisions. The bonds
cf nnwritten cnstom which the older giants dki little more than rec-
ogni» had pioTed too weak to hold the Angerins ; and the baronage
now direw them aside for the m i wti aintw of written law. It is In this
way that the Great Charter marks the transition from the age of
traditional rights, pre s er v e d in the nation's memory and officiaUy de-
clared by the Primate, to the age of written legislation, of Parlia-
ments and Statutes, which was soon to oome. The Church had shown
its power of self-defence in the stmgg^ over the interdict, and the
danse which reoogniaed its rights akme retained the older and gen-
eral fonn. But all Tagneness ceases when the Charter passes on to
deal with the rights of En^ishmen at large, their right to justice, to
security of person and ]ffoperty, to good government. 'No free-
man,' ran the memorable article that lies at the base of our whole
judicial system, 'shall be seised or imprisoned, or dispossessed, or
outlawed, or in any way brought to ruin ; we will not go against any
man nor send against him, sare by legal judgment of his peers or by
the law of the land.' 'To no man win we sell/ runs another, 'or
deny, or delay, right or justice.' The great reforms of the past reigns
were now f<vmally recognized; judges of assize were to hold their
dicuits four times in the year, and the Court of Common Fleas was
no longer to follow the King in his wanderings over the realm, but to
sit in a fixed place. But the denial of justice under John was a small
danger compared with the lawless exactions both of himself and his
predecessor. Richard had increased the amount of the scutage which
Henry II. had introduced, and applied it to raise funds for bis ran-
som. He had restored the Danegeld, or land tax, so often abolished,
under the new name of ' camcage,' had seized the wool of the Cis-
tercians and the plate of the churches, and rated movables as well as
land. John had again raised the rate of scutage, and imposed aids,
fines, and ransoms at his pleasure without counsel of the baronage.
The Great Charter met this abose by the provision on which our con-
stitutional system rests. With the exception of the three customary
feudal aids which still remained to the crown, 'no scutage or aid
shall be imposed in our realm save by the Coounon Council of the
realm ; ' and to this Great Council it was provided that prelates and
the greater barcms should be summoned by special writ, and all ten-
ants in chief through the sheriffs and bailifb, at least forty days
before. But it was less easy to provide means for the control of a
King whom no man could trust, and a oouncQ of twenty-four barons
A PART OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS. 889
was chosen from the general bodj of their order to enforce on John
the observance of the Charter, with the right of declaring war on the
King should its provisions be infringed. Finally, the Charter was
published throughout the whole country, and sworn to at every hun-
dred-mote and town-mote by order from the King." — Green's Short
History of the English People, p. 123.
APPENDIX D.
A PART OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS.
An Act fob Declabiho the Rights and Libebties of the
Subject, and Settling the Succession of the Crown.
1689.
Whereas the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons,
assembled at Westminster, lawfully, fully, and freely represent-
ing all the estates of the people of this realm, did upon the
thirteenth day of February, in the year of our Lord one thou-
sand six hundred eighty-eight [o. s.],^ present unto their Majes-
ties, then called and known by the names and style of William
and Mary, Prince and Princess of Orange, being present in
their proper persons, a certain Declaration in writing, made by
the said Lords and Commons, in the words following, viz. :
Whereas the late Eang James II., by the assistance of divers
evil counsellors, judges, and ministers employed by him, did
endeavour to subvert and extirpate the Protestant religion, and
the laws and liberties of this kingdom:
1. By assuming and exercising a power of dispensing with and
suspending of laws, and the execution of laws, without consent
of Parliament.
2. By committing and prosecuting divers worthy prelates for
humbly petitioning to be excused from concurring to the said
assumed power.
3. By issuing and causing to be executed a commission under
the Great Seal for erecting a court, called the Court of Commis-
sioners for Ecclesiastical Causes.
4. By levjring money for and to the use of the Crown by pre-
tence of prerogative, for other time and in other manner Uian
the same was granted by Parliament.
1 In New Style Feb. 23, 1689.
MO APPESDIX MK
5u Br iniBs mad lu e e piag > s tandin g armj widiin Udskiiig-
■ UBe of peace, w iti h ut lomcni of Ptoluunent^ and qaai-
teria^ mMi a % c uniini i to lav.
C Bj caiisBz arreral sood fldbjccta^ being FroCestants, to be
Aoraed. at the nae time vben Fqnsts were both armed and
emjiored con uari to lav.
7. Br Tkrfaring the freedom o£ electioo o£ members to serre
8. Bt praaeciitians in die Coort of King^s Bench for matters
and causes cognizabie onlr in Parliament, and by dirers other
ariairar j and iBegalramn,
9. And irikereas of hue jears, partial, conrnpl, and nnqnalified
perscMts hare been retomed, and serred on juries in trials, and
particnlarlT dircrs jurors in trials for h^^ treason, vfaich vere
10. And ezcessiTe bail hath been required of persons commit-
ted in criminal cases, to elode the benefit of the lavs made for
tibe libertT of the subjects.
11. And ezcessire fines hare been imposed; and illegal and
emd puniahments infficted.
12. And sereral grants and promises made <rf fines and fo^
feitures before anj conriction or jadgment against the persons
upon whom the same were to be leried.
AH which are utterlj and directlj contrary to the known laws
and statutes, and freedom of this realm.
And whereas the said late King James 11. having abdicated
the goTemment, and the throne being thereby vacant, his High-
ness the Prince of Orange (whom it hath pleased Almighty God
to make the glorious instrument of delivering this kingdom from
popery and arbitrary power) did (by the advice of the Lords
Spiritual and Temporal, and divers principal persons of the
Commons) cause letters to be written to the Lords Spiritual
and Temporal, being Protestants, and other letters to the sev-
eral counties, cities, universities, boroughs, and cinque ports,
for the choosing of such persons to represent them as were of
right to be sent to Parliament, to meet and sit at Westminster
upon the two-and-twentieth day of January, in this year one
thousand six hundred eighty and ei^ht,^ in order to such an
establishment, as that their religion, laws, and liberties might
not again be in danger of being subverted; upon which letters
elections have been accordingly made.
And thereupon the said Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and
1 In New Style Feb. 1, 1689.
A PART OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS. 341
Commons, pursuant to their respective letters and elections,
being now assembled in a full and free representation of this
nation, taking into their most serious consideration the best
means for attaining the ends aforesaid, do in the first place (as
their ancestors in like case have usually done) for the vindicating
and asserting their ancient rights and liberties, declare:
1. That the pretended power of suspending of laws, or the
execution of laws by regal authority, without consent of Parlia-
ment, is illegal.
2. That the pretended power of dispensing with laws, or the
execution of laws by regal authority, as it hath been assumed
and exercised of late, is illegaL
3. That the commission for erecting the late Court of Com-
missioners for Ecclesiastical Causes, and all other commissions
and courts of like nature, are illegal and pernicious.
4. That levying money for or to the use of the Croton by pre"
tence and prerogaiive^ toithout grant of Parliament, for longer time
or in other manner than the same is or shall be granted, is illegal.^
5. That it is the right of the subjects to petition the King, and aU
commitments and prosecutions for such petitioning are illegal,^
6. That the raising or keeping a standing army within the king'
dom in time of peace, unless it be with consent of Parliament, is
against law,^
7. JTiat the subjects which are Protestants may have arms for
their defence suitable to their conditions, and as allowed by law.^
8. That election of members of Parliament ought to be free.
9. Tliat the freedom of speech, and debates or proceedings in
Parliament, ought not to be impeached or questioned in any court
or place out of ParliamentJ^
10. TTiat excessive bail ought not to be required, nor excessive
fines imposed ; nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.^
11. That Jurors ought to be duly impanelled and returned, and
jurors which pass upon men in trials for high treason ought to be
freehMersJ
^ Compare this clause 4 with clauses 12 and 14 of Magna Charta,
and with Art. I. § vii. clause 1 of the Constitution of the United
States.
3 Compare clause 5 with Amendment I.
^ Compare clause 6 with Amendment IH.
^ Compare clause 7 with Amendment n.
^ Compare clause 9 with Constitution, Art. I. § vi. clause I
^ Compare clause 10 with Amendment VIII.
• CSompare clause 1 1 with Amendments VI. and VII
842 APPENDIX D.
li. lliat an grantB and promiaes of fines and forfeitureB of
paiticalar peraons before conviction are ill^al and void.
IS. And that for redress of all grieyanoes, and for the amend-
ing, strengthening, and preserving of the laws. Parliament
oo^it to be held frequently.
And thejr do claim, demand, and insist upon all and singular
the premises, as their undonbted rights and liberties; and that
DO declarations, jadgments, doings or proceedings, to the preja-
dice of the people in anj of the said premises, onght in anj
wise to be drawn hereafter into consequence or example.
To which demand of their rights they are particularly encour-
aged by the declaration of his Highness the Prince of Orange^
as being the only means for obtaining a full redress and remedy
therein.
Having therefore an entire confidence that his said Highness
the Prince <rf Orange will perfect the deliverance so far ad-
vanced by him, and will still preserve them from the violation
of their rights, which they have here asserted, and from all
other attempts upon their religion, rights, and liberties :
n. The said Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and ConmionSy
assembled at Westminster, do resolve, that William and Mary,
Prince and Princess of Orange, be, and be declared. King and
Queen of England, France, and Ireland, and the dominions
thereunto belonging, to hold the crown and royal dignity of the
said kingdoms and dominions to them the said Prince and
Princess during their lives, and the life of the survivor of them;
and that the sole and full exercise of the regal power be only
in, and executed by, the said Prince of Orange, in the names
of the said Prince and Princess, during their joint lives; and
after their deceases, the said crown and royal dignity of the
said kingdoms and dominions to be to the heirs of the body of
the said Princess ; and for default of such issue to the Princess
Anne of Denmark, and the heirs of her body ; and for default
of such issue to the heirs of the body of the said Prince of
Orange. And the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Com-
mons, do pray the said Prince and Princess to accept the same
accordingly.
The act goes on to declare that, their Majesties having ac-
cepted the crown upon these terms, the ** rights and liberties as-
serted and claimed in the said declaration are the true, ancienfi
and indubitable rights and liberties of the people of this king-
dom, and so shall be esteemed, allowed, adjudged, deemed, and
FUNDAMENTAL ORDERS OF CONNECTICUT. 343
taken to be, and that all and every the particulars aforesaid
shall be firmly and strictly holden and observed, as they are ex-
pressed in the said declaration; and all officers and ministers
whatsoever shall serve their Majesties and their successors ac-
cording to the same in all times to come/'
The act then declares that William and Mary " are and of
right ought to be King and Qaeen of England, etc. ; and it goes
on to regulate the succession after their deaths.
" The passing of the Bill of Rights in 1689 restored to the
monarchy the character which it had lost under the Tudors and
the Stuarts. The right of the people through its representa-
tives to depose the Eang, to change the order of succession, and
to set on the throne whom they would, was now established.
All claim of divine right, or hereditary right independent of the
law, was formally put an end to by the election of William and
Mary. Since their day no English sovereign has been able to
advance any claim to the crown save a claim which rested on a
particular clause in a particular Act of Parliament. William,
Mary, and Anne were sovereigns simply by virtue of the Bill of
Rights. George the First and his successors have been sover-
eigns solely by virtue of the Act of Settlement. An English
monarch is now as much the creature of an Act of Parliament
as the pettiest tax-gatherer in his realm." — Greenes Short Hu^
tory, p. 678.
APPENDIX E.
THE FUNDAMENTAL ORDERS OF CONNECTICUT.
1688(9).
Tkefint written constitution that crecUed a government,
FoBASMUCH as it hath pleased the AUmighty Grod by the
wise disposition of his diuyne p'uidence so to Order and dispose
of things that we the Inhabitants and Residents of Windsor,
Harteford and Wethersfield are now cohabiting and dwelling in
and vppon the River of Conectecotte and the Lands thereunto
adioyneing ; And well knowing where a people are gathered to-
gather the word of God requires that to mayntayne the peace
and vnion of such a people there should be an orderly and de-
844 APPENDIX E.
cent Grouerment established according to God, to order and
dispose of the affayres of the people at all seasons as occation
shall require ; doe therefore assotiate and conioyne our seines
to be as one Publike State or Comonwelth ; and doe, for cor
selues and our Successors and such as shall be adioyned to vs
att any tyme hereafter, enter into Combination and Confedera-
tion togather, to mayntayne and p'searae the liberty and purity
of the gospel! of our Lord Jesus w*^ we now p'fesse, as also the
disciplyne of the Churches, w*** according to the truth of the
said gospell is now practised amongst vs ; As also in o' Ciuell
Affaires to be guided and gouerned according to such Lawes,
Kules, Orders and decrees as shall be made, ordered & decreed,
as f oUoweth : —
1. It is Ordered, sentenced and decreed, that there shall he
yerely two generall Assemblies or Courts, the one the second
thursday in Aprill, the other the second thursday in September,
following ; the first shall be called the Courte of Election^
wherein shall be yerely Chosen fro tyme to tyme soe many
Magestrats and other publike Officers as shall be found requi-
sitte : Whereof one to be chosen Gouernour for the yeare ensue'
ing and vntill another be chosen, and noe other Magestrate to
be chosen for more than one yeare ; p'uided allwayes there
be sixe chosen besids the Gouernour; w"^ being chosen and
sworne according to an Oath recorded for that purpose shall
haue power to administer iustice according to the Lawes here
established, and for want thereof according to the rule of the
word of God ; w'''' choise shall be made by all that are admitted
freemen and haue taken the Oath of Fidellity, and doe cohabitte
w*''in this Jurisdiction, (bauing beene admitted Inhabitants by
the maior p't of the Towne wherein they line,) or the mayor p'te
of such as shall be then p'sent.
2. It is Ordered, sentensed and decreed, that the Election of
the aforesaid Magestrats shall be on this manner : euery p'son
p'sent and quallified for choyse shall bring in (to the p'sons de-
puted to receaue the) one single pap' w*** the name of him writ-
ten in yt whom he desires to haue Gouernour, and he that hath
the greatest nuber of papers shall be Gouernor for that yeare.
And the rest of the Magestrats or publike Officers to be chosen
in this manner : The Secretary for the tyme being shall first
read the names of all that are to be put to choise and then shall
seuerally nominate them distinctly, and euery one that would
haue the p'son nominated to be chosen shall bring in one single
FUNDAMENTAL ORDERS OF CONNECTICUT. 346
paper written vppon, and he that would not haue him chosen
shall bring in a blanke : and euery one that hath more written
papers then blanks shall be a Magistrat for that yeare; w*^ pa-
pers shall be receaued and told by one or more that shall be then
chosen by the court and sworne to be faythfuU therein ; but in
case there should not be sixe chosen as aforesaid, besids the
Goaernor, out of those w* are nominated, then he or they w*
haue the most written pap's shall be a Magestrate or Magestrats
for the ensueing yeare, to make vp the foresaid nuber.
3. It is Ordered, sentenced and decreed, that the Secretary
shall not nominate any p'son, nor shall any p'son be chosen
newly into the Magestracy w* was not p'pownded in some Gren-
erall Courte before, to be nominated the next Election ; and to
that end yt shall be lawfull for ech of the Townes aforesaid by
their deputyes to nominate any two who they conceaue fitte to
be put to election ; and the Courte may ad so many more as
they iudge requisitt.
4. It is Ordered, sentenced and decreed that noe p'son be
chosen Grouernor aboue once in two yeares, and that the Gou-
emor be always a meber of some approved congregation, and
formerly of the Magestracy w*''in this Jurisdiction ; and all the
Magestrats Freemen of this Comonwelth : and that no Mages-
trate or other publike officer shall execute any p'te of his or
their Office before they are seuerally sworne, w"** shall be done
in the face of the Courte if they be p''sent, and in case of ab-
sence by some depuj^ed for that purpose.
5. It is Ordered, sentenced and decreed, that to the afore-
said Courte of Election the seu'all Townes shall send their
deputyes, and when the Elections are ended they may p'ceed
in any publike searuice as at other Courts. Also the other.
General! Courte in September shall be for makeing of lawes,
and any other publike occation, w*^ conserns the good of the
Comonwelth.
6. It is Ordered, sentenced and decreed, that the Grou'nor
shall, ether by himselfe or by the secretary, send out sumons to
the Constables of eu' Towne for the cauleing of these two
standing Courts, on month at lest before their seu'all tymes :
And also if the Gou'nor and the gretest p'te of the Magestrats
see cause yppon any spetiall occation to call a generall Courte,
they may glue order to the secretary soe to doe w*''in fowerteene
dayes warneing ; and if vrgent necessity so require, yppon a
shorter notice, glueing sufficient grownds for yt to the deputyes
846 APPENDIX E.
when they meete, or eb be qaestioned for the same ; And if the
Goa'nor and Mayor p'te of Magestrats shall ether neglect or
refuse to call the two Grenerall standing Courts or ether of tho^
as also at other tymes when the occations of the Comonwelth
reqoire, the Freemen thereof, or the Mayor p^ of them, shall
petition to them soe to doe : if then yt be ether denyed or neg-
lected the said Freemen or the Mayor p'te of them shall haue
power to giae order to the Constables of the seuerall Townes to
doe the same, and so may meete togather, and chase to them-
selues a Moderator, and may p'ceed to do any Acte of power,
w*^ any other Grenerall Courte may.
7. It is Ordered, sentenced and decreed that after there are
warrants giaen out for any of the said Generall Courts, the Con-
stable or Constables of ech Towne shall forthw*** give notice dis-
tinctly to the inhabitants of the same, in some Publike Assembly
or by goeing or sending fro howse to howse, that at a place and
tyme by him or them lymited and sett, they meet and assem-
ble th6 selues togather to elect and chuse certen deputyes to
be att the Generall Courte then following to agitate the aiayres
of the comonwelth ; w*^ said Deputyes shall be chosen by all
that are admitted Inhabitants in the seu'all Townes and haue
taken the oath of fidellity; p'uided that non be chosen a Deputy
for any Grenerall Courte w^ is not a Freeman of this Comon-
welth.
The foresaid deputyes' shall be chosen in manner following :
euery p'son that is p'sent and quallified as before exp'ssed, shall
bring the names of such, written in seu'rall papers, as they desire
to haue chosen for that Imployment, and these 8 or 4, more or
lesse, being the nuber agreed on to be chosen for that tyme, that
haue greatest nuber of papers written for the shall be deputyes
for that Courte ; whose names shall be endorsed on the backe
side of the warrant and returned into the Courte, w*** the Con-
stable or Constables hand vnto the same.
8. It is Ordered, sentenced and decreed, that Wyndsor,
Hartford and Wethersfield shall haue power, ech Towne, to
send fewer of their freemen as deputyes to euery Grenerall
Courte ; and whatsoeuer other Townes shall be hereafter added
to this Jurisdiction, they shall send so many deputyes as the
Courte shall judge meete, a resonable p'portion to the nuber of
Freemen that are in the said Townes being to be attended there
in ; w** deputyes shall have the power of the whole Towne to
giue their voats and alowance to all such lawes and orders as may
FUNDAMENTAL ORDERS OF CONNECTICUT. 847
be for the publike good, and unto w*^ the said Townes are to be
bownd.
9. It is ordered and decreed, that the deputies thus chosen
shall haue power and liberty to appoynt a tyme and a place of
meeting- togather before any Generall Courte to aduise and con-
sult of all such things as may conceme the good of the publike,
as also to examine their owne Elections, whether according to the
order, and if they or the gretest p'te of them find any election to
be illegall they may seclud such for p'sent f r5 their meeting, and
returne the same and their resons to the Courte; and if yt prone
true, the Courte may fyne the p'ty or p'tyes so intruding and the
Towne, if they see cause, and giue out a warrant to goe to a
newe election in a legall way, either in p'te or in whole. Also
the said deputyes shall haue power to fyne any that shall be dis-
orderly at their meetings, or for not coming in due tyme or place
according to appoyntment ; and they may returne the said fynes
into the Courte if yt be refused to be paid, and the tresurer to
take notice of yt, and to estreete or levy the same as he doth
other fynes.
10. It is Ordered, sentenced and decreed, that euery Gen-
erall Courte, except such as through neglecte of the Gou'nor
and the greatest p'te of Magestrats the Freemen themselves
doe call, shall consist of the Gouernor, or some one chosen to
moderate the Court, and 4 other Magestrats at lest, w*^ the
mayor p'te of the deputyes of the seuerall Townes legally chosen;
and in case the Freemen or mayor p'te of the, through neglect
or refusall of the Grouernor and mayor p'te of the magestrats,
shall call a Courte, y* shall consist of the mayor p'te of Free-
men that are p'sent or their deputyes, w*'' a Moderator chosen
by the : In w"^ said Generall Courts shall consist the supreme
power of the Comonwelth, and they only shall haue power to
make laws or repeale the, to graunt leuyes, to admitt of Free-
men, dispose of lands vndisposed of, to seuerall Townes or
p'sons, and also shall haue power to call ether Courte or Mages-
trate or any other p'son whatsoeuer into question for any misde-
meanour, and may for just causes displace or deale otherwise
according to the nature of the offence ; and also may deale in
any other matter that concerns the good of this comonwelth,
excepte election of Magestrats, w^ shall be done by the whole
boddy of Freemen.
In w**' Courte the Grouemour or Moderator shall haue power to
order the Courte to giue liberty of spech, and silence vnceason-
348 APPENDIX E.
able and diBorderly speakeings, to pat all things to Yoate, and in
case the vote be equall to haue the casting voice. Bat non of
these Courts shall be adiorned or dissolued w*^oat the consent
of the maior p'te of the Court.
11. It is ordered, sentenced and decreed, that when any
Generall Courte vppon the occations of the Comonwelth haae
agreed vppon any sume or somes of mony to be leuyed vppon
the seuerall Townes w^^'in this Jurisdiction, that a Comittee be
chosen to sett out and appoynt w' shall be the p'portion of euery
Towne to pay of the said leuy, p'vided the Comittees be made
vp of an equall nuber out of each Towne.
14*'' January, 1688, the 11 Orders abouesaid are voted.
The Oath op the Gou'nor, for the [p'bent].
I i^ 11^. being now chosen to be Grou'nor w*4n this Jurisdic-
tion, for the yeare ensueing, and vntil a new be chosen, doe
sweare by the greate and dreadfull name of the everlineing God,
to p'mote the publicke good and peace of the same, according
to the best of my skill ; as also will mayntayne all lawf ull priui-
ledges of this Comonwealth ; as also that all wholesome lawes
that are or shall be made by lawfull authority here established,
be duly executed ; and will further the execution of Justice ac-
cording to the rule of Gods word ; so helpe me God, in the
name of the Lo : Jesus Christ.
The Oath of a Magestrate, for the p*sent.
1, 1^. W, being chosen a Magestrate w^in this Jurisdiction
for the yeare ensueing, doe sweare by the great and dreadful!
name of the euerliueing God, to p'mote the publike good and
peace of the same, according to the best ef my skill, and that I
will mayntayne all the lawfull priuiledges thereof according to
my vnderstanding, as also assist in the execution of all such
wholsome lawes as are made or shall be made by lawfull author-
ity heare established, and will further the execution of Justice
for the tyme aforesaid according to the righteous rule of Gods
word ; so helpe me Grod, etc.
[Until 1752, the legal year in England began March 25 (Lady Day),
not January 1. All the days between January 1 and March 25 of the
year which we now call 1639 were therefore then a part of the year
1638 ; so that the date of the Constitution is given by its own terms as
1 638 « instead of 1639.]
STATES CLASSIFIED. 849
APPENDIX F.
THE STATES CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO ORIGIN.
1. The thirteen original states.
2. States formed directly from other states.
Vermont from territory disputed between New York and
New Hampshire, Kentucky from Virginia, Maine
from Massachusetts, West Virginia from Virginia.
3. States from the Northwest Territory (see p. 253).
Ohio, Michigan,
Indiana, Wisconsin,
Illinois, Minnesota, in part.
4. States from other territory ceded by states.
Tennessee, ceded by North Carolina,
Alabama, ceded by South Carolina and Greorgia,
Mississippi, ceded by South Carolina and Georgia.
5. States from the Louisiana purchase (see p. 253).
Louisiana, North Dakota,
Arkansas, South Dakota,
Missouri, Montana,
Kansas, Minnesota, in part,
Nebraska, Wyoming, in part,
Iowa, Colorado, in part.
6. States from Mexican cessions.*
California, Utah, Wyoming, in part,
Nevada, Colorado, in part.
7. States from territory defined by treaty with Great Britain
(see p. 254).
Oregon, Washington, Idaha
8. States from other sources.
Florida, from a Spanish cession,
Texas, by annexation (see p. 254).
APPENDIX O.
APPENDIX G.
TABLE OF STATES AND TERRITORIIS.
Batia batd m etnMUt nf iseo U) go into tffici in >90l — 194
)! l&y 1 '
2,218,331
2,S(»|S16
3,ioe,oc5
EXAMINATION PAPER. 86:
APPENDIX H.
POPULATION OF THE UHITED STATES, ITW- 1800,
Shomng PtneaUtgt* of Urban Popntatim.
Date.
Pop. of U.S.
No. el CItin
Pop. ot Cltiu.
■^^Xi°""
1790
3,929,214
g
131,472
3.33
ison
210,873
3.9
1810
7,239,881
356,920
4.9
1820
9,63j,g22
13
474,135
*.9
1830
12,866.020
2S
B64.509
6.7
1840
17,069,453
1,453,994
8.S
1850
23,191,876
89
2,897,586
1S.5
1860
31,443,321
141
5,072,356
16.1
IBTO
38,568,371
226
8,071,875
20.9
1880
50,155,783
886
11,318,597
22.5
1890
62,622.250
443
18,235,670
1900
76.803,387
•517
32.4
■ loMwpanMd ptaoes of 01
AN BXAHINATION FAFER FOB CUSTOMS CLBBKS.
Applicant's Ho. ,
Afpucuti'b Dbclakatioh.
DiBZOTions. — 1. The nnmber above is your txamnation numicr.
Vtite it &t Ihe top of every BLeet given jon in tluB examination.
S. Fill piomptlj all tbe blanks in thia sheet. Auj o '
lead to the rejection of jonr papeiB.
a. Write oil answers and exercisea in ink.
4. Write jonr name on no other sheet bnt this.
Flace this sheet ia tbe envelope. Write jonznombei w
velope and seal the same.
follows :
B (if female, please ray whether
I declare opott mj honour
1. Uj true and full nami
Mre. or MiBs)
2. Since m^ application was made I have been living at (give
iU the places)
852 APPENDIX L
3. My post-office address in full is
4. If examined within twelve months for the civil service -^
for any post-office, custom-house, or Department at Washing-
ton — state the time, place, and result.
5. If you have ever been in the civil service, state where and
in what position, and when you left it and the reasons therefor.
6. Are you now under enlistment in the army or navy?
7. If you have been in the military or naval service of the
United States, state which, and whether you were honourably
discharged, when, and for what cause.
8. Since my application no change has occurred in my health
or physical capacity except the following :
9. I was born at , on the — day of , 188 .
10. My present business or employment is
11. I swore to my application for this examination as near as
I can remember at (town or city of) , on the day
of , 19 .
All the above statements are true, to the best of my knowlr
edge and belief.
(^Signature in nsualform,)
Dated at the city of , State of , this day
of , 19 .
The questions are different at each examination, but the fol-
lowing are in subject and grade fair specimens. No other speci-
men questions can be furnished to applicants. The different
subjects are weighted according to their relative importance in
the examination. In determining the general average of a com-
petitor, the average on each subject is multiplied by the number
indicating the relative weight of the subject, and the sum of
these products divided by the sum of the relative weights gives
the general average.
(b) CUSTOM-HOUSE SERVICE.
There are three grades of general examinations for this ser-
vice, namely :
EXAMINATION PAPER.
858
FIRST OBABB.
(Time allowMl, 6^ boon.)
Subjects.
First — Spelling
Second — Arithmetic
Third— Letterwriting
Fourth — Penmanship
Fifth — Copying from
plain copy
Sixth — Copying from
rough draft
Seventh — Geography
Total
It
I
10
25
15
15
10
10
15
100
SECOND GBADB.
(Tim* aUowad, 4 hoan.)
Subjects.
First — Spelling
Second — Arithmetic
Third - Letterwriting
Fourth — Penmansliip
Fifth — Copying from
plain copy
Total
Si
20
20
20
20
20
100
THIRD GRADE.
(TiiM ftllowcd, 8 boon.)
SUBJIOTS.
First — Spelling
Second — Arithmetic
Third-Letter writing
Fourth — Penmanship
Fifth — Copjring from
plain copy.
Total.
20
100
The first-grade examination will be given to applicants for snch
deputy officer positions as may be subject to examination, and
for clerk (male and female), and day inspector.
The second-grade examination will be given to applicants for
the positions of assistant weigher, messenger, and sampler.
The third-grade examination will be given to applicants for the
positions of watchman, night inspector, opener and packer, in-
spectress, foreman, janitor, attendant, porter, and classified laborer.
Applicants for the grade of boatman will be rated only upon age,
experience, and intelligence, character as a workman, and physi-
cal condition, except in positions in which educational qualifica-
tions are desired. In such cases the third-grade examination
will be given in addition to the elements named.
FIRST GRADE CUSTOM-HOUSE SERVICE EXAMINATION.
First Subject. — Spelling, Spelling is dictated by the exami-
ner. The words are written by the competitor in the blank spaces
indicated on the first sheet of the examination.
The examiner pronounces each word and gives its definition. The
competitor is required to unite only the word and not its definition.
Second Subject. — Arithmetic. This subject will embrace
problems in fundamental rules, fractions, percentage (interest
and discount), and analysis.
[N. B. — In solving problems the processes should be not merely indicated, but
all the figures necessary in solving each problem should be given in full. The
answer to each problem should be indicated by writing " Ans." after it.]
Question 1, This question comprises a test in adding numbers
across and finding the grand total. There are usually three
columns of about twelve numbers each to be added. The arrange-
ment of the columns is shown below, but only two numbers are
placed in each column, being intended merely to explain the
test : —
854
3617
APPENDIX I.
7169 1 A»-^1 1
6326
5145
676
Grand total. . . .
Question 2, Multiply 321.6555 by 819| : from the product sab-
tract 16042.0918, and divide the remainder by 5.
Question 3. What is the value of 72 yards of goods weighing
2^ pounds to the yard, composed of 5 parts of silk worth M per
pound, 3 parts of cotton worth $0.48 per pound, and one part of
worsted worth $1.76 per pound ?
Question 4« The total amount of duty on two invoices was
$409.60. The rate of duty on the first invoice was 25 per cent.
and on the second 18 per cent. Had the rate of duty on the second
been also 25 per cent, the total duty on the two invoices would
have been $490. What was the value of each invoice ?
Question 5, At the rate of 15 cents per square yard and 30 per
cent, ad valorem, what is the amount of duty on 38 pieces of
drugget, each 24 yards long and 45 inches wide, costing J of a
pound sterling per linear yard ? (£ = $4.8665.)
Third Subject. — Letter writing. The competitor is required
to write a letter on one of two subjects given.
This exercise is designed to test the competitor's knowledge
of simple English composition and his general intelligence. Li
marking the letter, its errors in form and address, in spelling,
capitals, punctuation, syntax, and style, and its treatment of the
subject are considered.
The competitor must avoid allusion to his political or religious
opinions or affiliations. The letter must contain not less than 150
words, must be addressed to the ** United States Civil Service
Commission, Washington, D. C," and must be dated at the place
where the examination is held. The examination number, and
not the name of the competitor^ must be used for a signature to the
letter.
Fourth Subject. — Penmanship. The mark on penmanship
will be determined by legibility, rapidity, neatness, and general
appearance, and by correctness and uniformity in the formation
of words, letters, and punctuation marks in the exercise of the
fifth subject — copying from plain copy.
Fifth Subject. — Copying from plain copy. N. B. — Para-
graph, spell, capitalize, and punctuate precisely as in the copy.
All omissions and mistakes are taken into consideration in mark-
ing this exercise.
Make an exact copy of the following : —
Sec. 3. That whenever, in the judgment of the head of any
Department, the duties assigned to a clerk of one class can be
as well performed by a clerk of a lower class or by a female
clerk, it shall be lawful for him to diminish the number of clerks
of the higher grade and increase the number of the clerks of the
EXAMINATION PAPER. 866
lower g^rade within the limit of the total appropriation for such
clerical service : Provided, That in making any reduction of force
in any of the Executive Departments the bead of such Depart-
ment shall retain those persons who may be equally qualified
who have been honorably discharged from the military or naval
service of the United States, and the widows and orphans of
deceased soldiers and sailors. (19 Stats., 255.)
Sixth Subject. — Copying from rough draft. The competitor
is required to make a fair copy, on a blank sheet, of a rough-
draft manuscript, punctuating and capitalizing properly, writing
in full all abbreviated words, and correcting errors in syntax
and orthography.
Seventh Subject. — Geography, This subject is given in
the first-grade examination only.
The foUowing are samples of questions which were used in Oiis
examination :
1. Name States as follows : Two that border on the Columbia
River ; two that border on both the Missouri and Mississippi
rivers ; two that border on both Virginia and the Ohio River ;
two that border on New Jersey ; two that border on the Savan-
nah River. 2* In what State is each of the following-named :
Penobscot Bay, Corpus Christi Bay, Puget Sound, Pearl River,
Oneida Lake. 3* Name the largest city in each of the follow-
ing-named States, and name the river or body of water on which
each city required is situated: Connecticut, Mississippi, Nebraska,
Minnesota, Ohio. 4* In what State is each of the following-
named prominent cities located : Racine, Bangor, Allegheny,
Charlotte, Cairo, Los Angeles, Shreveport, Fargo, Evansville,
Ogdensburg. 5* In what foreign country, colony, or possession
is each of the following-named prominent cities : Bremen, Buenos
Ayres, Yokohama, Cape Town, Havre, Melbourne, Adrianople,
Ottawa, Teheran, Panama.
SECOND AND THIRD GRADE CUSTOM-HOUSE SERVICE
EXAMINATIONS.
The second-grade examination is similar to that for the first
grade, with these exceptions : Arithmetic embraces problems in
the four fundamental rules, common and decimal fractions. The
letter must contain not less than 125 words. Copying from
rough draft and geog^raphy are omitted.
iRie third-grade examination is similar to that for the second
grade, with these exceptions : In the spelling exercise the words
are less difiBcult. Arithmetic embraces simple tests in addition,
subtraction, multiplication, division, and United States money.
The letter must contain not less than 100 words.
S56 APPENDIX J.
APPENDIX J.
THE HEW TOBK CORRUPT PRACTICES ACT OF 189a
Chat. M. — As Act to ameitd title fits of ths Pehai. Codb
KEl^TCrO TO CKIXES AGAOTST THS SLECTITS FRAHCHISE.
by Ob Gofwaor April 4,18801 P— J,tti»e
T%e People of the Stale ofNem York^ represented in Senate and
Assembly^ do enact asfoUoMss:
Section 1. Title fire of the Penal Code, entitled '* Of crimes
against the elective franchise," is herebj amended so as to read
as fc^ows :
§ 41. It shall be mdawfol for anj person, directly or indirectlj,
hj himself at through any other person :
1. To pay, lend, or oontribnte, oir offer or promise to pay, lend,
or contribote any money or other valuable consideration, to or
for any voter, (v to or for any other person, to induce such voter
to vote or refrain from voting at any election, or to induce any
voter to vote or refrain from voting at such election for any par-
ticular person or persons, or to induce such voter to come to the
polls or remain away from the polls at such election, or on ac-
count of such voter having voted or refrained from voting or
having voted or refrained horn voting for any particular person,
or having come to the poll or remained away from the polls at
such election.
2. To give, offer, or promise any office, place, or employment,
or to promise to procure or endeavour to procure any office,
place, or employment to or for any voter, or to or for any other
person, in order to induce such voter to vote or refrain from
voting at any election, or to induce any voter to vote or re-
frain from voting at such election for any particular person or
persons.
3. To make any gift, loan, promise, offer, procurement, or
agreement, as aforesaid, to, for, or with any person in order
to induce such person to procure or endeavour to procure the
election of any person, or the vote of any voter at any election.
4. To procure or engage, promise or endeavour to procure, in
consequence of any such gift, loan, offer, promise, procurement,
or agreement, the election of any person or the vote of any voter
at such election.
NEW YORK CORRUPT PRACTICES ACT. 357
5. To advance or pay or cause to be paid any money or other
valuable thing to or for the use of any other person yiith the in-
tent that the same, or any part thereof, shall be used in bribery
at any election, or to knowingly pay, or cause to be paid, any
money or other valuable thing to any person in discharge or re-
payment of any money, wholly or in part, expended in bribery
at any election.
§ 41a. *It shall be unlawful for any person, directly or indi-
rectly, by himself or through any other person :
1. To receive, agree, or contract for, before or during an
election, any money, gift, loan, or other valuable consideration,
office, place, or employment for himself or any other person, for
voting or agreeing to vote, or for coming or agreeing to come to
the polls, or for remaining away or agreeing to remain away
from the polls, or for refraining or agreeing to refrain from vot-
ing, or for voting or agreeing to vote or refraining or agreeing
to refrain from voting for any particular person or persons at any
election.
2. To receive any money or other valuable thing during or
after an election on account of himself or any other person hav-
ing voted or refrained from voting at such election, or on account
of himself or any other person having voted or refrained from
voting for any particular person at such election, or on account
of himself or any other person having come to the polls or re-
mained away from the polls at such election, or on account of
having induced any other person to vote or refrain from voting
or to vote or refrain from voting for any particular person or per-
sons at such election.
41&. It shall be unlawful for any candidate for publif office,
before or during an election, to make any bet or wager with a
voter, or take a share or interest in or in any manner become a
party to any such bet or wager, or provide or agree to provide
any money to be used by another in making such bet or wager,
upon any event or contingency whatever. Nor shall it be law-
ful for any person, directly or indirectly, to make a bet or wager
with a voter, depending upon the result of any election, with the
intent thereby to procure the challenge of such voter, or to pre-
vent him from voting at such election.
§ 41c. It shall be unlawful for any person, directly or indi-
rectly, by himself or any other person in his behalf, to make use
of, or threaten to make use of, any force, violence, or restraint,
or to inflict or threaten the infliction by himself, or through any
868 APPENDIX J.
other person, of any injury, damage, harm, or loss, or in any
manner to practice intimidation upon or against any person, in
order to induce or compel such person to vote or refrain from
voting at any election, or to vote or refrain from voting for any
particular person or persons at any election, or on account of
Buch person having voted or refrained from voting at any elec-
tion. And it shall be unlawful for any person by abduction,
duress, or any forcible or fraudulent device or contrivance what-
ever to impede, prevent, or otherwise interfere with, the free
exercise of the elective franchise by any voter ; or to compel,
induce, or prevail upon any voter either to give or refrain from
giving his vote at any election, or to give or refrain from giving
his vote for any particular person at any election. It shall not
be lawful for any employer in paying his employees the salary
or wages due them to inclose their pay in " pay envelopes '* upon
which there is written or printed any political mottoes, devices,
or arguments containing threats, express or implied, intended or
calculated to influence the political opinions or actions of such
employees. Nor shall it be lawful for any employer, within ninety
days of general election to put up or otherwise exhibit in his fac-
tory, work-shop, or other establishment or place where his em-
ployees may be working, any hand-bill or placard containing any
threat, notice, or information that in case any particular ticket or
candidate shall be elected, work in his place or establishment
will cease, in whole or in part, or his establishment be closed up,
or the wages of his workmen be reduced, or other threats, express
or implied, intended or calculated to influence the political opin-
ions or actions of his employees. This section shall apply to
corporations, as well as to individuals, and any person or corpo-
ration violating the provisions of this section shall be deemed
guilty of a misdemeanour, amd any corporation violating this
section shall forfeit its charter.
§ 41d, Every candidate who is voted for at any public election
held within this state shall, within ten days after such election,
file as hereinafter provided an itemized statement, showing in
detail all the moneys contributed or expended by him, directly
or indirectly, by himself or through any other person, in aid of
his election. Such statement shall give the names of the vari-
ous persons who received such moneys, the specific nature of
each item, and the purpose for which it was expended or con-
tributed. There shall be attached to such statement an affidavit
snbscribed and sworn to by such candidate, setting forth in sub-
NEW YORK CORRUPT PRACTICES ACT. 369
gtance that the statement thus made is in all respects true, and
that the same is a full and detailed statement of all moneys
so contributed or expended by him, directly or indirectly, by
himself or through any other person in aid of his election.
Candidates for offices to be filled by the electors of the entire
state, or any division or district thereof greater than a county,
shall file their statements in the office of the secretary of state.
The candidates for town, village, and city offices, excepting the
city of New York, shall file their statements in the office of the
town, village, or city clerk respectively, and in cities wherein
there is no city clerk, with the clerk of the common council
wherein the election occurs. Candidates for all other offices,
including all offices in the city and county of New York, shall
file their statements in the office of the clerk of the county
wherein the election occurs.
§ 41f. A person offending against any provision of sections
forty-one and forty-one-a of this act is a competent witness
against another person so offending, and may be compelled to
attend and testify upon any trial, hearing, proceeding, or inves-
tigation in the same manner as any other person. But the tes-
timony so given shall not be used in any prosecution or proceed-
ing, civil or criminal, against the person so testifying. A person
so testifying shall not thereafter be liable to indictment, prose-
cution, or punishment for the offense with reference to which his
testimony was given and may plead or prove the giving of
testimony accordingly, in bar of such an indictment or prose-
cution.
§ 41/ Whosoever shall violate any provision of this title, upon
conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment in a
county jail for not less than three months nor more* than one
year. The offenses described in section ^ forty-one and forty-
one-a of this act are hereby declared to be infamous crimes.
When a person is convicted of any offense mentioned in sec-
tion forty-one of this act he shall in addition to the punishment
above prescribed, forfeit any office to which he may have been
elected at the election with reference to which such offense was
committed ; and when a person is convicted of any offense men-
tioned in section forty-one-a of this act he shall in addition to
the punishment above prescribed be excluded from the right of
suffrage for a period of five years after such conviction, and it
shall be the duty of the county clerk of the county in which
^ So in the original.
860 APPENDIX J.
any rach conyiction shall be had, to transmit a certified copy of
the record of conyiction to the clerk of each county of the state,
within ten days thereafter, which said certified copy shall be
duly filed by the said county clerks in their respectiye officeSi
Any candidate for office who refuses or neglects to file a state-
ment as prescribed in section forty-one-d of this act shall be
deemed guilty of a misdemeanour, punishable as aboye proyided
and shall also forfeit his office.
§ 41^. Other crimes against the electiye franchise are defined,
and the punishment thereof prescribed by special statutes.
§ 2. Section forty-one of the Penal Code, as it existed prior
to the passage of this act, is hereby repealed.
§ 8. This act shall take effect immediately.
FORM OF AUSTRALIAN BALLOT. 861
APPENDIX K.
FORM OF AUSTRALIAN BALLOT ADOPTED IN MASSA-
CHUSETTS, 1889.
OFFICIAL BALLOT
roE
Precinct , Ward
of (citt ob town),
NOVEMBER , 18
[IM-Simile of Signature of Seorwtuy.]
Skerttary ofth$ CommmtwmUh,
SAMPLE BALLOT,
With explanations and illustntion.
Prepared by the Ballot Act League with the approval of the
Secretary of the Commonwealth.
Some representative districts elect one, some two, and a few
three representatives to the General Court. Worcester County
elects four commissionerB of insolvenoy instead of three as
in other counties.
No county commissioners or special commissioners will he
voted for in the cities of Boston and Chelsea or the county of
Nantucket.
Forms for nominating candidates can be had at the depart-
ment of the Secretary of the Commonwealth.
— 1_
Carefully observe the official specimen ballots to be posted
and published just before election day.
862 APPENDIX K.
To vote for a Person, mark a Cross X
aOVBHNOB
Vote for ONBi
OLIYEB AMB8,ofIut<m
Republican. |
WILLIAM H. BARLB, of Worcester ....
Prohibition. |
WILLIAM E. RU8SJ2LL, of Cambridge ....
. Democratie. |
LIEUTBNANT-GOVBBNOB . . .
Vote for ONE.
JOHN BASCOM, of WiUiamstown
. Prohibition.
JOHN Q. A. BRACKBTT, of Arlington
Republican.
JOHN W. OOBCOBAN, of Clinton
Democratic.
SEOBBTABY
. Vote for ONE.
WILLIAM N. OSGOOD, of Boston
Democratic.
HENRY B. PEIRCE, of Abington ....
Republican.
HENRT 0. SMITH, of Williamsbuig ....
. Prohibition.
1
TBBASUBEB.
. Vote for ONE
JOHN M. FISHERf of Attloborough ....
. Prohibition.
GKOKOE A. MARDEN, of LoweU
Republican.
HENRY C. THAOHBR, of Yarmouth ....
Democratic.
AUDITOB
. Vote for ONE
OHARLKS R. LADD, of Springfield
. Republican. |
EDMUND A. STO WE, of Hudson
Prohibition.
WILLIAM A. WILLIAMS, of Worcester ....
. Democratic.
1
ATTOBNBY-QBNBBAL ....
. Vote for ONE.
ALLEN COFFIN, of Nantucket
Prohibition. |
SAMUEL 0. LAMB, of Greenfield
Democratic. |
ANDREW J. WATERMAN, of Pittsfleld ....
Republican.
COUNOIIjIjOB, Third District .
. Vote for ONE
ROBERT 0. FULLER, of CambridRe
. Republican.
—
WILLIAM B. PLUMMBR, of Newton ....
Democratie.
SYLVANUS 0. SMALL, of Winchester ....
. Prohibition.
SEN ATOB. Third Middlesex District .
. Vote for ONE
FREEMAN HUNT, of Cambridge
Democratic.
CHESTER W. KINGSLEY, of Cambridge .
( Republican.
{ Prohibition.
DISTBICT ATTOBNBY, Northern District
Vote for ON
rE
CHARLES S. LINCOLN, of Somerville ....
Democratic.
JOHN M. RBAD, of LoweU
Prohibition. |
WILLIAM B. STEYENS, of Stoneham ....
. Republican. {
FORM OF AU8TRAUAN BALLOT. 868
in the Square at the right of the name.
BBPBB8BNTATIVB8 IN QBNBRAL OOUBT
Fint MiddlMez Diatriot. Vote for TWO.
VyiLLlAM H. MARBLE, of Cambridge ProhibitionTT
laAAO MoLKAN, of Cambridge DemocratJcTl
QBOBGE A. PBBKIN8, of Cambridge ..... Democratic. |
JOHN BEAD, of Cambridge Bepublican. |
CHBaTEB y. BANGER, ot Cambridge Beppblican. |
¥^ILLIAM A. START, of Cambridge . . . * . Prohibition. |
8HBBIFF .... . . Vote for ONB.
HENRT Q. GUSHING, of LoweU Repttbltean.
HENRY Q. HARIQNS, of LoweU Prohibition.
WILLIAM H. SHERMAN, of Ayer Democratic.
OOMMISSIONBB8 OF INSOLVSNOY. Vote for THBB B.
JOHN W. ALLARD, of gramini^iam Democratic.
QBOBGE J. BURNS, of Ayer Republican.
WTTiLTAM P. CUTTER, of Cambridge Prohibition.
FREDERIC T. GREENHALGE, of LoweU .... Republican.
JAflffBS HICKS, of Cambridge . . Prohibition.
JOHN C. KENNEDY, of Newton Republican. |
BICHABD J. MoKELLEGET, of Cambridge .... Democratic, j
BDWABD D. MoYBY, of Lowell Democratic.
ELMEB A. STEVENS, of Somerville Prohibition.
COUNTY COMMISSIONBB. • . Vote for ONBL
WILLIAM 8. PBOST, of Marlborough . . . . Bepublican. |
JOSEPH W. BARBER, of Sherfaom Prohibition.
JAMES SKINNER, of Wobum • . I . I , . Democratic
BPBCIAIj COMMISSIONBBS . . . Vote for TWO.
HENRY BBADLBE, of Medford Democratic.
LYMAN DYKE, of Stoneham . . . Bepublican.
JOHN J. DONOVAN, of Lowell Democratic.
WILLIAM B. KNIGHT, of Shirley Prohibition.
0B80N E. MALLOBY, of Lowell '. T^""! I T""! Prohibition.
EDWIN E. THOMPSON, of Wobum Bepublican.
APPENDIX K.
"T^f^ifUl^r^
^^L
^i Q'
--
llF
,M !*zs5?
i^^_
4
^m^E-
^^w
i
iirHi ^
n!^^^
^
^llS
I
^^ irijj-
r=^
1
M
' '""r^
'x
"'' 'V L
1-1
StrOQESTIONS TO VOTEBa
Oln TOUT HUM and nsld«nce to the IxJlot olei
Uw slHok IIM, wlU Bdmll Toa wltUo tin nil and
Qo akniB 10 oo* of tb« TOtlng aholTd ui4 then
Ibrk aBIiMXlntluiqiuniU the eight ot Chi
jon with to TOM. No Mhar method of narlilng
LDf on flndtng ^onr d
Tonthimot.
Ld jour hollot.
to Toto fcff John Bowlee for Oorenuv, jon w
GOVHBNOB ....
. . . Vote for ONE.
JOHN B0WLB8, of Taonton
. . . ProMMlion. 1 X
■LIJAH SMITH, of PUUfleld . . .
1
Tota tor e«ise !• Hoitoa, of ahal8e&,
lUherighioEit. Thug, If 7on wiBt
IT GoVBrthor, yon would pTBp&ie jojl
OOVBBNOB ....
. . . VoterorOMBL
~-
. . . Democntic
Oigrxi r. MorUHt, of Oulaia
n
FORM OF AUSTRALIAN BALLOT. 866
Yon eannot remain within the rail more than ten minntee, and in ease all the
flhelyei are in nae and other yoters waiting, you are allowed only flre minntee at
the voting shelf.
Before leaving the voting shelf, fold your ballot in the same way as it was folded
when you received it, and keep it so folded until you place it in the ballot box.
Do not show any one how you have marked your ballot.
Go to the ballot box and give your name and residence to the officer in charge.
Put your folded ballot in the box with the certificate of the Secretary of the
Commonwealth uppermost and in sight.
Ton are not allowed to carry away a ballot, whether spoiled or not.
A voter who declares to the presiding official (under oath, if required) that he
was a voter before May 1, 1867, and cannot read, or that he is blind or physically
VBable to mark his ballot, can receive the SBslgtance of ond or two of the eleetioD
ofloen ill the mazUng of his ballot.
INDEX.
_____ .J„Pom, 1«.
Altred the Gnat. h. El.
Alnubow, (H Poai-lionK.
AmhuHdm, 246, 247.
Aii»iiilli« conriJtDtioiia, 203, WB.
Ammdmeot, twelfth. 336.
AmendnwDU to the Coiutitutioii of tt
UnlMd State*. 198, 23S, ZIO.
Androa. Sii Edmund, 166.
AniupollH, Hrly clij ^Tenim«it I]
AniupolU OkTHl bAdvmy, 2
Appellate Juriedlctloo, tee J
fl, ata,
39; in Englwld, 41
; VirghUm 1G2,
imdaTYaliuttoa,
in coloniid Haw
; lA Mujlmnd,
35, ^, 28; nndeTTHluKtlon, 29; In
41; In Marflaiid himdrBd, 77 ; In
DekwHe, 78 ; in FHrngylvmilii, 78 ; In
AanlMwiU, 111 ; in Mmcbiuatt* Bh,
163. 164.
AiKd>te jurtlcei ot the United BtUsi,
wiUi Hew EoEbnd tow
kttaindar, tte SlUi of.
S .general (ibte
edATAt gorenunoit), \
Appendix K.
Bidlln, SS ; In Kujiud, 76.
BlbUognpblal notee: Tuition, 14, IBi
timnghlp, New Engbnd, 40. 4T, oJn
31 : coonty, TO, alii, 60, 62, 66, 68, 60,
66, 6*1 ; towneUp-naODUr
- ■ 81,98,89784
lOO, (OB, JIW,
•~J, 123, ir
nrteme, S7, at*
(6; D%, 144, I-l
h 208, oIm 197.
i», 201, 203, 2M I EMeml Union, 288
~:£a, alio 214, 210, 221, 224, 2S6, 228,
240, 241, 242, 247, 268, 267, 261,270,
272, 277, 278, 280,
filounerai la^ijlAtnTe, kdvutife of,
Bm<rfR%htii,lW{ in fadenl Ooutito-
tloa, 2^270.
Bill* ol uttafaideT, 183, 267.
BilliofDi'ed)t,183,2Se.
Bomrd of faMllh. 101, 118.
Boirongb.GO, 102,103; origin ot BoiUA
borought, 104-110; nbtlon to tU-
Xsod taimdndi, 104, ICG ; to Uie
IOC i HiTioe to Engliih trMdon,
868
INDEX.
lOB, 109 ; tendflDcy to become <doee
corpo re tio n e, 110.
Boroagb-nere, 106.
Boetop, a political centre during Bero-
Intion, 31; aeet of QoAiter Seanoos,
53; chaiwe from town to city gOTem-
ment in, 100, 101 ; mayor of, note, 113 ;
water aai^y of, note, 116 ; growth of
popolatioo, 124.
Bridgeport, Conn. , mayor haa enqpeneiTe
Teto, note, 122.
BnxMine, Maaa., note, 102.
Brooklyn, 124.
Bochanan, J., 239.
Bondeaataat, 253.
Banker HiU, battle of, 166, 213.
B nr ge aa ee, definition of, 103, 106, 106,
162; jee Virginia.
Borgeaaea, Honae of, 162, 161.
Borgojme, J., 216.
Borr, Aafon, 235.
By-Uwa, 31, 36, 38, 30, 69, 77, 79, 111,
121.
Cabinet vt. preaidential gOTemment,
176, 176 ; federal compared with Eng-
liah, 243-246.
Cabot, John, 146.
California, achool districta in, 93;
municipal aelf-govemment in, note,
120; note, 174; 264.
Calvert, Gedliua, «ee Lord Baltimore.
Calverta, the, 168, 169, 160.
Cambridge, England, 103; Maaaachu-
aetta, 17 ; aeatof Quarter SeaBiona,63,
103.
Carolinaa, 160, see North and South Caro-
lina, 159, 160.
Carr, Dabney, 211.
Carteret, SirG., 151, 169.
Cartier, J., 146.
*' Casters,'* '' chesters," eatira^ 104.
Caucus, congressional, 240.
Cemeteries, town, 3.
Census bureau, 260, 257.
Centralization v«. local self-goyemment,
288.
Centralized administration in France,
180-182.
Century (Roman), compared with Eng-
lish division of hundred, 76.
Chunberlain, 111.
Chancellor, Lord, 229.
Charles I., 149, 152, 156, 168.
Charles II., 149, 150, 155, 158, 201.
Charles City County, Ya., 62.
Charleston, 8. C, 72, 73.
Charter colonies, see Colonial goyem-
ment.
Charter, Great, see Magna Carta.
Charters, colonial: New York, 111;
London and Pljrmouth Companies, 148,
149; Massachusetts, 153, 155; Con-
necticut and Rhode Island, 155; Mary-
land, 156; replaced by state constitu-
tions, 170; forerunners of state con-
stitutions, 201, 202.
Charters, early English, of medisBval
towns, 1%; Great Charter, 197, 198.
Charters, municipal, 102, 120.
Cheating the goveniment, 28.
Cherokeea, 76.
Cheshire, 166.
Chicago, increase in popnlati<m, 124.
Chief-joatice of United States, 229, 260,
279.
Church oongregations, 16, 17, 38, 39, 61.
Church gOTemment, in New England,
16, 17; in England, 36-39; Puritan
theory of, 61 ; suffrage in early Mas-
sachusetts restricted to church mem-
bers, 166 ; tee alto Pariah.
Church rateis, 37, 38. ^
Church wardens, 38 ; in Virginia, 69, 60.
Circuit Court. See Court.
Cities, rate of taxation in, 27 ; represen-
tation in English shire-mote, 60; rarity
in Virginia, 68 ; the city, 98-140 ; ne-
cessity for repreaentative goyemment
in, 100-102 ; definition of, in England
and the U. 8., 103 ; first city gorem-
menta fai America, 110, 113, ill ; pre*
aent govemmait in United States, 116-
140^ munidpal functions, 116-120 ; or-
ganisation of gOTemment, 120-122;
powers deriTod from state, 120 ; gOT-
emment compared with state and na-
tion, 123 ; recent growth of, 124, 125;
chief defects, 126-134 ; city in relation
to national politics, 128, 129, note 128-
130; control by state legislature, 131,
132 ; reforms proposed, 134-140 ; bib-
liographical notes, 144-145, also 100,
105, 106, 111, 113, 117, 118, 119, 122,
123, 127, 131, 133, 138.
Citizens, duty of, 10, 11 ; use of term in
England, 103; suffrage in most states
restricted to citizens, 173.
City Council, 121, 122; short-sightednesB
of, 125 ; 127; 129; share in appointing
power, 130 ; selection and perma-
nence, 136; increase in power, 137 ;
concentration of power in, 138; in re-
lation to autocratic mayor, 139.
CiTQ Serrice, 132 ; reform, 275-279.
CiTil Sendee Act, 277.
Civil SerTice Commission, 249.
Civil War — local gOTemment in South
Carolina before and after, 73 ; 1 78 ; 186 ;
247 ; 256; federal taxation during, 272 ;
growth of spoils system after, 2^.
Clans, 35, 36, 42, 104 ; unit of tribe, 49,
75.
CUy, H., 240.
Clerk, see County, Parish, Town, Vestry.
Cleveland, G., 1^, 278.
Close corporations, in Virginia parish,
60 ; Virginia Court of Quarter Sessions,
62, 79; in English cities, 110; in colo-
nial Annapolis and Philadelphia, 112,
113.
Coinage of money forbidden to states,
183.
Collectors of taxes, 21, 38 ; in "Virginia
parish, 60 ; in Virginia county, 63 ; in
Delaware ; 78, in New York, 79.
Colonial governments, 146-166 ; forms at
time of Revolutionary War, 160; legis-
latures, 160, 161 ; governments com-
pared with that of England, 162.
INDEX.
369
Colorado, school dirtriot in, 98 ; woman
niffraffe in, 174.
Columbia. 8. C, 73. '
Comitia, 34.
Commerce and labor, department of,
244,250.
Committee of Safety, 168.
Committees, of City Council, 122, 130.
Committees of Congress, 228.
Committees of Correspondence, 168, 211,
212.
Committees, legislative, 175.
Common Council, 101, 103; in guilds,
107; London, 107, 108; New York city,
111, 112; Annapolis and Philadelphia,
112, 113 ; in modem American dties,
121.
Common drivers, 38.
Common, town, 18.
Commons, House of, 6, 8; origin of, 40 ;
first complete, 41 ; origin of represen-
tation in, 60; Simon de Montfort's,
109, 110, 152, 167; model for stote
Houses of Representatives, 171 ; power
at present, 171, 201, 202 ; Speaker,
228 ; impeachment by, 228, 229 ; influ-
ence of cabinet upon, 244, 245.
Commonwealth, definition , 5.
Communes, in France, 181.
Comptrollers (Controllers), 139, 177.
Confederacy of New England colonies,
210,
Confederation, distinguished from fed-
eral Union, 253, 254, 260.
Confederation, see Articles of.
Congress, see Albany, Stamp Act, Conti-
nental, Provincial, Federal.
Congressional districts, 224-226, 238.
Connecticut, river towns, 17, 74, 149,
150 ; colonial government, 155, 160;
colonial councU, 161, 162; 170; 174;
first written constitution, 200, 201 ;
the Connecticut Compromise, 222 ;
263; 269.
Connecticut Compromise, 222.
Constables, 3; town, 21 ; election, 24 ;
duties in connection with town-meet-
ing, 24 ; 32; 36 ; in English parish, 37 ;
antiquity of ofQce, 39; in Virginia, 63;
high, 76, 77; in New York towns, 79;
87 ; New York city, 110, 111.
Constituent Assembly, 181.
Constitutions, take place of colonial
charters in states, 170; written, safe-
guards of liberty, 176; state, 195-
204 ; peculiarly American, 1% ; so-,
cial contract, 1% ; written charters,'
196-198 ; English constitutional docu-
ments, 197-199; Mayflower compact,
200 ; first written, 200, 201 ; colonial
charters, 201, 202 ; recent changes in
character of state, 202-204 ; amend-
ments, 203 ; bibliographical notes, 208,
also 197, 199, 201, 203, 204;
Constitution, see Federal.
Construction, see Strict, and Loose.
Consuls, United States, 246.
Continental Congress, the, 7 ; 212-219;
no connection with Federal Congress,
^3 ; lack of full sovereignty, 214,
216-218 ; votes, 223 ; 232 ; pMer money,
266; 263; 269.
Continental money, 216, 266.
Contract, history of, 196.
Convention, Constitutional, in Cuba,
266.
Convention, see Federal.
Conventions, nominating, 240, 241.
Controller, see State auditor. Comp-
troller.
Coroner, 61, 62; in Mast., 63; in Vir-
nnia, 63, in South Carolina, 73; in
Penni^lvania, 78 ; in New York dty,
111.
Corporation, municipal, see Municipal.
Corporations, public utility, 126; pri-
vate and municipal, constituted by
states, 183.
Correction lines, 83.
Correspondence, see Committees of.
Cotton, J., 17.
Council, governor's, 161, M0 City, Com-
mon, Privy.
Counts, 61.
County, relation to town, 20; 24, 26;
representation in, 41 ; in its b^;in-
nings, 48-64 ; England and our states
divided into, 48; origin of name, 61 ;
officers in mediseval Englidi, 61, 52;
modem English, 63 ; begiiminffa in
Massachusetts, 63 ; modem, in lussa-
chusetts, 54-67 ; legal status of, 644
officers, 55, 66; old Virginia, 57-67;
unit of representation in Vir^^nia, 61 ;
m South Carolina, 73, 74, 75 ; hi Muy-
land, 77 ; Delaware, 77, 78 ; Pennsyl-
vania, 78 ; New York, 79 ; Mich^^,
89 ; Illinois, 90; county boards, 92, 93 ;
general criticinn of county system, 99,
100 ; 111 ; 150; bibliographical notes,
10 \ also m, 62, 65, 58, 60, 62, 64, 66,
66.
County clerk, 63, 73.
County commissioners, 64; duties, 65,
66 ; in South Carolina, 73 ; in Penn-
sylvania, 78.
County court, shire-mote, 61 ; in Massa-
chusetts, 63, 54 {cUso 154) ; in Vir-
ginia, 61-64; New York, 111 ; place in
state judicial system, 185; see also
boroughs (English).
County lieutenant, 64.
County palatine, 156.
County treasurer, 65 ; in Virginia, 63 ;
in Delaware, 78.
Court of appeals. New York senate, 171,
186.
Court of appeals in case of capture, 216.
Court baron, 36 ; in Maryland, 75 ; 157.
Court, circuit, 260, 261.
Court, city, see Municipal, Mayor's.
Court of Common Pleas, 111.
Court, coroner's, 51.
Court, county, see County court.
Court day in Virginia, 66, 66 ; compared
with New England town-meetings, 66.
Court, district, 260, 261,
Court, the General, 41, 53, 154, 155, 200.
Court of General Sessions, 63 ; see Jus-
tices of the peace.
370
INDEX.
72,73; dee>
177, MS; ied-
•f fibeitj, 176 ; ap-
of jad^m. M2; 960-2GB
»7.
as.
(^avford.
Criminal
of
264,987
H., MO, 276, 279.
184.
Ofivcr, 109, 199.
M5;
CvMi, 266,
76.i
274,275l
dntiaa, 163, 186, 271, 2T2,
Dakoka, towiMlup goTemment in, 85,
^91,92.
Dawnpork, J., 17.
Declaratkm of Independenea, faooditioPB
in Virgfaiia before, 66; 272.
Dadaratioo of Bi^ta, 19&
Dedham,22.
Deeds, register of, 55.
Delaware, local goremment in, 77, 78;
oolonixatdon, 151, 158, 160; state gor-
ermnent, 173, 174 ; adoption of coo-
stitotion, 209.
Democracy, pare, 32, 35; democratic
type of society in New England, 59;
South Carolina more democratic than
Virginia in colonial days, 71, 72; re-
presentative, 98; advantages of, 98,
99 ; safegruards of American, 176.
Democratic party, 274, 277.
Denizens, 173.
Denmark, 213, 246.
Denver, 124,
Departments (France), 180, 181.
Departments, »ee Executive.
Deputies, see Massachusetts, 154.
Deputy-governor, 154.
Diocese and city, 103.
Diplomatic service, 246, 247.
Direct government, compared with in-
direct, 99-102; see also New England
town meeting.
Discoveries, 146, 147.
Dissolution, of parliament, 167, 168; of
colonial assemblies, 168.
3L
41; 61.
L, 40; the Modal FluliaiMDt,
nL,
S2.
of the
of the Conatitotion, 255,
273,274.
for CooKran, 223, 224; for
227.
EfectiTe Jodidaiy, 187, 188.
Bfectoral Ccdlege, in Marylaiid, 170:
for etefting Praadont of Uniftad
Statea, 233-236; thfooiy vs. practioe,
237-239.
Electoral Commiasion, 206.
Electora, presidential, 233, 234.
Etiaalwrtih, Qoeen, 77.
Eminent domain, right of, definition, 4 ;
compared with taxation, 4.
England, 5-8; colonists from, 16-19;
home of New Ekig^and institutions, 34-
53 ; the tun in, 35, 36; the town, 37;
the county, 48-53 ; kingdom of, how
formed, 60; characteristic features of ,
found in ofdonial Maryland, 75 ; hun-
dred, 76 ; use of " town " and " dty "
in, 103 ; origin of English boroughs and
dtiee, 104-110; under ffimon de Mont-
fort, 109, 110; 112, 113, 114; muni-
cipal coundlsin, 138 ; claims to North
America, 146-165; 171 ; 180; 184; in
relation to American conatitntions,
195-200; 209; 228; 244, 245.
Entails in Virginia, 68.
Envoys, 246.
Essex, Massachusetts, 63.
Europe, our ancestors in, 35.
Excise, 271, 272.
Executive, see Federal.
Executive departments, 244-250.
Exemptions from taxation, 26.
Ex posi facto law, 183, 257.
Exports, prohibition of dntiea on, 256.
Faneuil Hall, 100.
Federal Congress, not descended from
Continental Congress, 213 ; descended
from state legislatures, 219 ; 220-230;
INDEX.
371
House of RepresentatiyM, 220-222;
Senate, 222, 223 ; electioiu, 223, 224 ;
date of aeeembling, 226, 227 ; common
powers and duties of two houses, 227;
salary and priyil^;es of members of
Congress, 227, 228; legislation, 229,
230; 234; extra sessions, 243; Presi-
dent's influence upon, 244; creation
of executive departments, 244; 253;
powers, 254, 256, 258 ; powers denied,
256, 257 ; 264 ; 266.
Federal constitution, 198; construction
of, 217; provisions in, 230, 239, 242,
244 ; adaptability, 253 ; amendments
to, 258 ; creation of federal judiciary,
260 ; territories, 263 ; ratlflcation, 269,
270; omission in, 275.
Federal convention, 217, 222, 233, 263,
256,263.
Federal executive, 232-260 ; President,
232-244 ; executive departments, 244-
260; 253.
Federal judiciary, see Judiciary.
Federal Union, origin, 209-219; forces
making for, 209-210 ; earliest league
in America, 210; early congresses,
211; committees of correspondence,
211 ; Continental Congress, 212 ; chief
executive, 232 ; admission of new
members, 263-265 ; bibliographical
notes, 286-292 ; alto 214, 216, 221, 224,
225, 226, 240, 241, 242, 247, 266, 267,
261, 270, 272, 277, 278, 280.
Federalist party, 273.
Fence-viewers, 23, 24, 38, 79.
Field-drivers, 23.
Fines for non-attendance at town-meet-
ing, 19.
Fire department, 116.
Pirma Burgi, 109, 111.
Florence, 180.
Florida, 146; early ooloniiation, 147;
purchase, 264.
Forestry, bureau of, 260.
Forum, 34.
France, loans to United States, 7 ; claims
to North America, 146, 147 ; rule of
kings without parliament, 168; locfd
government in, 180-182; danger to
American colonies, 210, 211 ; loans to
Continental Congress, 215; alliance
with, 215, 216 ; ambassadors to, 247 ;
Louisiana, 264.
Franchises, municipal, 126.
Franklin, Benjamin, 170, 211, 217, 232.
Freedom of speech and press, 270.
Freedom too often destroyed in process
of nation-building, 39, 'U).
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut,
200,201.
Gadsden Purchase, 264.
Gage, General T., 168.
Garfield, J. A., 239.
General Court, see Court.
General Sessions, Court of, see Court.
General ticket, 121, 136, 226, 238.
George III., 109, 148, 164, 218.
Georgia, 150, 169, 160, 269.
Germans, first appearance In history,
36 ; settlement in South Carolina,
72.
Gerry, Elbridge, 224, 226.
Gerrymandering, 224.
Gila River, 264.
Glasgow, water supply of, note 116;
tnmsportation svstem, note 117.
Government, origin and definition, 6, 7;
support of, ^ forms, 6 ; moot essential
feature, 8 ; study of, 10, 11 ; delusions
about, 30; English forms in United
States, 67 ; direct and indirect, 98-102;
always cumbrous, 177.
Governor,, in colonial Massachusetts, 64;
head of militia in modem Massachu-
setts, 66; in colonial Virginia, 61, 63,
64 ; antagonism to colonial governors,
66 ; elected by freemen in early Mas-
sachusetts, 163, 164 ; royal, in Massa*
chusetts, 166; appointed by Lord Pro-
prietary in oolomal Murybuid, 167 ; in
Pennsylvania, 158; general character
of proprietai^ governors, 169; com-
parison of governors under different
forms of colonial government, 160;
relati(Hi8 with oolontes, 162 ; states do
without governors during Revolution-
ary period, 169; under state govern-
ments, 170; modem functions, 177-
179 ; in tenitories, 263, 264 ; Porto
Rico, 266.
Gk>vemor-geneTal, 233.
Grand jurors in Delaware, 78; 186, 187.
Grant, U. S., 242.
Great Britain, 3; woman sufErage in,
175; 247; 264.
Greece, 34; grouping of population in
ancient, 75.
Guam, 266, 267.
GuUds, 106, 107.
Gymnasiums, pablic, 119.
Habeas Corpua, 267.
HamUton, A., 217, 271-276.
Harrison, B., 239.
Hartford, Connecticut, 200.
Harvard Coll^^e, 22.
Havana, 268.
Hawaii, 266, 266.
Hayes, R. B., 236, 239.
Haywards, 38.
Heads of departments, 121. 122, 278.
Health, officers, 20 ; state board of, 177.
Henry I., 106.
Henry VIII., establishment of office of
lord-lieutenant of county, 62.
Henr^, Patrick, 67.
Higginson, F., 17.
Highways, 20 ; supervision of, in Eng-
land, 62 ; supervision in early Massa-
chusetts, 63 ; in modem Massachusetts,
56; in Virginia, 63; character of
American, 99, 100.
Highways, surveyors of, see Surveyors.
Hiitory, uses of study of, 9, 10 ; advan-
tages of our country as a field for
study of principles underlying miiver-
sal, 93.
Holland, United States loans to, 7, 216.
Home rule in cities, 136.
372
INDEX.
Hooker, T., 17.
House of delegates, Porto Rico, 266.
House of Burgesses, see Burgesses.
House of Commons, see Commons.
House of Representatives, see Represen-
tatWes.
Huguenots, 71.
Hundred, in Maryland, 75; compared
with Oreek phratry anch Roman curia,
76, 76 ; decay of, in England, 76, 77 ; in
Yirffinia, 77; political unit in Mary-
land, 77; in Delaware, 77; relations
with coun^, 78 ; relation to English
borough, 106.
Hundred court, 76 ; duties of hundred-
meeting in Muyland, 77 ; relation to
English borough court, 105.
Hundredman, 76.
Hungerford, Sir Thomas, 228.
Idaho, school districts in, 93; woman
suffrage in, 174.
Illinois, settlement, 81 ; conflict between
town and county systems, 89-91 ;
court of appeals, 186 ; 263.
Impeachment, 228, 229, 242.
Implied powers of the Federal Constitu-
tion, 273.
Incorporated villages, 102.
Indentured servants, 68.
Independence, see Declaration of.
Indei)endence of executive, 176.
Indiana, settlement, 81 ; 90 ; townships,
92; 263.
Indians, 18; clans among, 35; resem-
blances of Indian socifd organization
to Greek and Roman, 34, 35, 75 ; 152 ;
162 ; New England Confederacy, 210 ;
Indian bureau, 249.
Indirect government, see Representa-
tion ; the county ; the city.
Inquest, 52.
Inspectors of elections, 78.
Instrument of Government, 199.
Intercitizeni^ip, 258.
Interior, Department of the, 237, 244,
249.
Internal improvements, 274.
Internal revenue, commissioner of, 247.
Iowa, townships in, 92 ; 203.
Ipswich, seat of Quarter Sessions, 53.
Ireland, woman suffrage in, 175.
Jackson, Andrew, 230, 240, 276,'277.
James I., oligarchical government un-
der, 110; 149; 151.
James II., 158, 159, 198.
Jamestown, 152.
Jefferson, Thomas, abolition of entails,
58 ; description of Virginia ve8tr3anen,
60; quotation concerning New Eng-
land township, 65 ; 67 ; land-ordinance
of 1785, 81 ; presidential election,
1800, 235,240; 242; 243 ; opposition to
Hamilton, 273; founder of national
party, 274 ; 275.
Jersey City, length of mayor's term in,
121.
John, King, 197, 198.
Johnson, President, 229.
Johnson, R. M., 236.
Journal of Congressy 227.
Judges, circuit, tee . Justicea in eyre ; in
South CaroUna, 72, 73; municiiial,
122; selection of, 187, 188; ledersl,
260, 261.
Judiciary (state), 185-188; courts, 186,
186 ; jury system, 186, 187 ; (federal),
254; 260-262.
Juries, 61, 52, 186, 187.
Jurisdiction, appellate, 185, 186, 262.
Jurisdiction, original, 185, 186, 262.
Jurors, 20, 21; in mediseval English
county, 52; 78.
Justice, see Chief justice, Associate jus-
tices of United States.
Justice, department of, 237, 244, 249.
Justices in eyre, 61, 186.
Justices of the peace, in England, 62 ;
in early Massachusetts, 53 ; appointed
by governor, 54; in modem Massachu-
setts, 55, 56 ; in Virginia, 61; in Dela-
ware, 78 ; 87 ; 108 ; 186.
Justices, trial, 66, 73, 185.
Kansas, townships in, 92; woman suf-
frage, 174.
Kentucky, 62 ; size of counties in, 74 ;
settlement, 81 ; schools, 94; court of
appeals, ISiS.
King, origin of title in England, 49.
Lancaster, duchy of, 156.
Land grants, in Massachusetts, 17 : in
Vir^a, 67, 58.
Land-ordinance of 1785, 81.
Leadership, training in, 66, 67 ; 243.
Legal tender, 183, 255, 256.
Legislature, in Virginia, 61, 63 ; South
Carolina, unit of representation in, 71 ;
difficulty of apportioning representa-
tion in South Carolina, 73 ; legislative
districts in Mainland, 77 ; state legis-
lature in relation to cities, 102; in
colonial Penni^lvania, 112; 120, 121;
special legislation for cities, 131, 132 ;
home rule, 135 ; municipal accounts re-
ported to, 137 ; in states at present,
173, 175, 176 ; territorial, 263, 264.
Letters of marque, 215, 254.
Levy court, 78; compared with New
York Board of Supervisors, 79.
Lewes, battle of, 109.
Lexington, battle of, 165.
Liberty, political, source of, 41 ; United
Statescompared with Russia, 42; New
England compared with Virginia, 65,
66; in English cities, 107-109; French
notion of, 181.
Libraries, public, 3 ; in South Carolina,
72 ; in cities, 119.
Licenses, 20.
Lieutenant, see County, lord.
Lieutenant-governor, 155, 171.
Liliuokolani, 265.
Lincoln, Abraham, 6, 32, 178, 238, 239.
Lobbying, 175.
Local government in New England and
in Virginia before the Revolution
contrasted, 64-67.
INDEX.
378
Local option, 90-92.
Local self-government vs. centraUsatiou,
288.
Log-rolling, 93, 176.
London, a county, 105 ; guilds in, 107 ;
goyemment of city, 107 ; a republic,
108, 109, 112-114.
London Company, the, 147, 149-151.
Loose constructionist, 273.
Lord Chancellor, 229.
Lord-lieutenant of English county, 52,
53 ; compared with county-lieutenant
in Virginia, 64 ; in London, 108.
Lord mayors of London, 107, 108.
Lords, House of, origin of representation
in, 50 ; model for stete senates, 171 ;
impeachment, 229.
Lords of the Manor, see Manor.
Lord Proprietary in Manrland, 157 ; in
Pennsylvania, 158; in New York, 158 ;
in New Jersey, 169 ; in the Carolinas
and Georgia, 159 ; general character of
proprietary governments, 159.
Louis XV., 7, 8.
Louisiana, parishes m, 48 ; 186, 236, 263,
264.
Limaoy and Charity, State Board of, 177.
Lynch law, 72, 178.
" Machine," 129.
Madison, J., 67, 217, 224.
Magic Fund delusion, 30, 86.
Magristrates, 154.
Magna Charta, 39, 186, 197, 198.
Mame, 149, note 174, 226.
Manchester, England, water supply of,
note 116.
Manor, lords of, 18, 19, 36, 39, 50 ; in
Maryland, 76.
Manors, 36, 39; in medisBval London,
106.
Marcy, W. L., 277.
Mark, 35.
Marrii^e, certificates, 21 ; laws, 183.
Marshal, United States, 215, 261.
Marshall, J., 67.
Martial law. 111, 156.
Mary II., 198.
Maryland, local institutions, 74-77 ; col-
onization, 150, 151 ; palatinate founded,
156; 160; election of senators, 170;
203 ; 263 ; 270.
Mason and Dixon's line, 158.
Massachusetts, early colonists, 17 ; pre-
amble to school law, 22 ; school act, 23 ;
system of taxation, 25, 26 ; beginnings
of coimty, 53 ; modem county, 54-57 ;
size of county, 74 ; cities, 102; Maine
in connection with, 149, 150 ; colonial
government, 152-155, 160, colonial
council, 161 ; provisional government
during Revolution, 167-170; changes
leading to present government, 169,
170; 174; courts of appeal, 186; com-
mittees of correspondence, 211 ; ger-
rymandering, 225 ; 263 ; 269, 270; Aus-
tralian ballot system, 279.
Massachusetts Bay, 16, 110, 149, 152;
governor and company of, 168.
Mayflower compact, 200.
Mayor, 101 ; see Port-reeve, 107 ; lord
mayor of London, 108; 110; in New
York city, 110, 112; in Philadelphia and
Annapolis, 112, 113; methods of selec-
tion in American cities, note 113;
in modem American city, 121, 122 ;
selection, 127; power of appointment,
130 ; agent of council, 138 ; absolute
executive head, 138, 139 ; office open, to
women in Kansas, 174; in French
Commune, 181.
" Mean whites," their origin, 69.
Measures of wood, 23, 24.
Meeting-house, 18, 19.
Merdumt guilos, see Guilds.
Merchants' Association of San Fran-
cisco, 134.
Mercia, 50.
Meridian, principal, 81-88.
Merit system, 135.
Message, governor's, 78; presidential,
243,244.
Mexican War, 264.
Mexico, 146,264.
Michigan, settlement, 81, 82 ; first west-
em state to adopt town-meeting, 89;
establishments of counties and town-
shipB,89; county board, 92 ; 203; 263.
Middlesex, Mass., 53.
Militia, county, in England, 62 ; in Mas-
sachusetts, 53, 66; in Virg^a, 64;
militia district in Maryland, 77 ; state
militia, 178, 254 ; territorial, 263.
Ministers, to foreign courts, 246.
Minnesota, local option in, 91 ; township
government in, 92 ; municiiml self-gov-
ernment in, note 120.
Mint, director of, 247.
Mir, in Russia, 4Q.
Missouri, admission as dave state, 90;
township governments, 91, 92 ; muni-
cipal self-government in, note 120.
Moderator, 24.
Mohawks, 75.
Monroe, J., note 239.
Montana, school districts in, 93.
Montfort, Simon de, 40, 41, 109, 110.
Montgomerie charter in New York oLty,
111.
Morris, Robert, 214.
Municipal corporation, 102.
Municipal court, see Court.
Municipal departments, 121, 122.
Municipal Program, 138, 139.
Municipal Reform, Act of 1836, 110.
Municipal Voters' League of Chicago,
134.
Municipal government, in England, 104-
110 ; in colonial America, 110-114 ; in
the United States, 115-140.
Municipality, see Cities.
Names, geographical, their signiflcanoe,
36, 49, 62, m.
Napoleon I., 181.
National Bank, 274.
National Convention, proposed by Sir
Hany Vane, 199 ; party, nominating,
240,241.
National Municipal League, 138.
374
INDEX,
Nfttionftl Repablicsn party, 273.
Natandisation, 174, 254.
NftTy, department of the, 237, 244, 248.
Nebraska, townahip goyemment in, 91.
Negroes, 68, 94.
Nevada, aehool district in, 93.
New England, first colmiists, 16; soil,
17 ; TiUages, 18 ; qrstem of taxation,
25-30 ; origin of political institutions,
38-41 ; settlement compared with Vir-
ginia, 57 ; type of society in, 69 ; 62 ;
local ffovemment compaured with Vir-
ginia, 64-67 ; use of term town in, 103 ;
settlement of west by New Bnglandera,
151 ; Massachusetts Bay settlement,
153 ; threatened secession, 217 ; see
aUo^ Township.
New Hampshire, 63; royal province, 149 ;
150 ; 160 ; 203 ; ratification, 270.
New Haven, founding of colony, 149.
New Jersey, 151 ; colonial government,
159, 160 ; court of appeals, 186 ; 238 ;
ratification, 269.
New Mexico, 146, 264.
New Netherland, 150, 168.
New York city, 100 ; history of govern-
ment in, 110-114 ; mayors, note 113 ;
water supply, note 116; growth of pop-
ulation, 124; Stamp Act Congress,
211 ; seat of Continental Congress,
214.
New York State, local government in,
79; settlement of central and north-
em portions, 81 ; 90 ; 151 ; coloidal
government, 168-160 ; 203 ; 263; rat-
Ication, 270 ; spoils system, 275.
Newcastle, 106.
Newfoi^jdland, 146 ; fisheries, 147.
Newspapers, 31, 99.
Nichols, Colonel R., 110.
Norfolk, Mass. (1643), ^.
Norman Conquest, 36 ; changes in shire
government after, 51, 76.
North Carolina, 62 ; early colonization
147, 150, 159 ; 178 ; ratification, 270.
Northumbria, 50.
Norway, 163.
Norwich, England, 106 ; resemblance of
government to that of New York city,
111.
Oglethorx>e, James, 159.
Ohio, 62 ; settlement, 81 ; 178 ; 203 ; 263;
river, 263.
Oligarchy, see Close corporation ; alao^
98, 113.
" One-man power," 139.
Ordinance of 1785 concerning survey of
public lands, 81.
Ordinance of 1787, 90, 263, 264, 269.
Oregon, 81, 82; school districts, 93;
settlement by New Englanders, 161 ;
264, 265.
Original jurisdictions, see Jurisdiction.
Overseers in New York towns, 79.
Overseers of the poor, 20; duties, 21;
in England, 38 ; m Virginia parish, 60 ;
in Delaware, 78 ; in Pennsylvania, 78 ;
in New York, 79; 87 ; in American
cities, 121.
Overseen of roads, $ee Roads.
Oxford, 103.
Palatine coontiea, 166.
Paper money, 7, 255, 266.
Pardoning power, governor's, 178; too
freely used in U. S., 178 ; president's,
242.
Paris, boolevards of, 117 ; 181 ; treaty of,
266.
Parish in England, 36-39, 41 ; designa-
tion of local district in Louisiana, 48;
in Virginia, 59-61, 66 ; in South Caro-
lina, 71-73 ; in mediaeval London, 106.
Parish clerk, 38 ; in Virginia, 69, 60.
Parliament, 6 ; compared with colonial
legislatures, 162; American colonial
attitude toward, 162-164; sovereigns
of Great Britain owe throne to parlia-
ment, 163, 164; diasolatioii of, 167,
168; ministers responsible to, 2S9;
money bills, 230.
Parliament, the Model, see Edward L
Parliament of Simon de Montfort, 40,
41, 109, 110.
Parties, national, 256, 273, 274.
Party politics, 128, 129.
Patent office, 249.
Patnmage, 278.
Peers, creation of, 171.
Penn, William, 161, 158, 159, 211.
Pennsylvania, local government in, 78 ;
81 ; county boards, 98 ; cities in, 102;
colonisation, 161; colonial govern-
ment, 168, 160 ; 210 ; ratification, 269;
272 ; 275.
Pensions bureau, 249.
Perjury, 27.
Personal property, 25-28 ; exempt from
taxation, 26 ; difference between taxes
upon and real estate, 28.
Petit jury, 186, 187.
Petitions, citizens', 136.
Philadelphia, numberhig of streets in,
83, 84 ; early city government in, 112,
113; mayor of, note 113; length of
mayor's term in, 121 ; growth of pc^-
lation, 124 ; Continental Congress, 212,
214 ; Federal Convention, 217.
PhiHppines, 266-268.
Philippine Assembly, 267.
Philippine Commission, 267.
Fhrat^, 75 ; see Curia, hundred.
Plantations, compared with farms, 18 ;
in Virginia, description, 58, 69 ; 152;
definition, note 162.
Platforms, 240.
Plymouth colony, 149; annexed to
Massachusetts, 150.
Plymouth Company, the, 147-149, 151,
152.
Pocket veto, 230.
Police, 62, 101, 113, 116.
Polk, J. K., 239.
Political libOTty. See Liberty.
Poll-tax, 26, 26, 174.
Poor, overseers of, »ee Overseers.
Poor-houses, 3, 21.
Population, rural and urban, 124.
Port-reeve, 105, 107.
INDEX.
876
Porto Rico, 266, 268.
Portugal, 213.
Po89e comitcUtUy 51, 56.
PoBt-master general, 237, 244, 248.
PoBtmasters, appointmenta, 242, 275,
276, 279.
Post ofBce department, 244, 248, 249.
Pound, the, 23.
Pound-keepers, 23 ; pound-masters, 79.
Precincts in Virginia, 63.
Prefect, 180, 181.
Premier, 246.
President, derivation of title, 169; of
councils, 169, 170 ; of provincial con-
gresses, 169; of the Continental Con-
gress, 214 ; of the United States, time
of election, 227 ; 228 ; veto power,
230 ; title and position, 232 ; method
of election, 233, 236, 237, 238; order of
snooeasion, 236, 237; minority, 238,
239 ; nomination, 239-241 ; qualifica-
tions, 241, 242; term, 242; duties,
242-244; compared with English
prime minister, 246; appointing
power, 248, 261, 264, 266, 267, 276, 278.
Presidential succession, 236, 231.
Prices affected by paper money, 266, 256.
Primaries, 129, 136; composition and
duties, 241.
Primary assembly, 69, 96, 163; iee alto
New Bi^land town meeting.
Prime minister, 245.
Privilege from arrest, etc.. 227, 228.
Privy council, compared with governors'
councils in the colonies, 161 ; 201;
compared with American cabinet, 246.
Probate Court, tee Court.
Probate, judge of, 73.
Probate, roister of, 66.
Property qualification, in Delaware, 173;
abolition of, note 174.
Proportional representation, 136.
Proprietary colonies, see Colonial gov-
ment.
Pro^dence, colony of, 149.
Province, royal, note 160, see New
Hampdiire, New York.
Provincial period in history of Massa*
chusetts, note 160.
Provincial Congress, 169, 212.
Public domain, settiement of, 81-88,
263,264.
Public monopolies, note 12G-127.
Public ownership, note 127.
Qualifications for office, 173, 241, 242.
Quarter Sessions, Court of, tee Court.
Quartering of soldiers, 270.
Quebec, battle of, 213.
Range lines, 82.
B»te of taxation, 28, 29.
Ratification of the Constitution, 269,
270.
Real estate, 26-28 ; exempt from taxa-
tion, 26; difference between taxes
iqK>n and personal property, 28.
Recorder, 111, 112.
Reeve, 36, 40, 41, 60, 76 ; «m Port, and
Borough.
Referendum, 204.
Register, of deeds, 66; of probate, 56.
Regulating Act, 164, 166.
** Regulators " in South Carolina, 72.
Religious rights regulated by states,
183.
Representation, 40-43 ; shire-mote, 50 ;
in Vii^^ia parish, 59 ; unit of, in New
England and in Virginia, 61 ; in South
Carolina, 73, 74; representative dis-
tricts in early Maryland, 77; disad-
vantages of representative govern-
ment, 99, 100 ; necessity for, in city
and county governments, 99-101; par-
liament of mmon de Montfort, 109 ; in
Virginia, 151, 152; Massachusetts,
153, 154 ; Maryland, 157; Pennsylvania
and Delaware, 158; representative
government common to thirteen ori-
ginal states, 160, 161; in party ma-
chinery, 241.
Representatives, House of, state, 171 ;
federal, 220-230; character, 220;
members, 220, 221 ; three-fifths com-
promise, 221 ; large vs. small states,
221, 222; Connecticut compromise,
222; congressional districts, 224-226 ;
representatives at large, 226; com-
parison between English and Ameri-
can practice, 226; assembling, 227;
speaker, 228 ; impeachment, 229 ;
money bills, 229 ; representatives can-
not serve in electoral coIIm^, 233;
presidential elections, 235 ; 2m.
Republic, tee Colonial Massachusetts,
154; colonial Connecticut and Rhode
Island, 166.
Republican colonies, tee Colonial gov-
emment.
Rc^blican parties, 273, 274.
Responsibility of public officials, 32, 139,
177, 229.
Restricting the suffrage, 166, note 174.
Revenue collectors, appointment, 2^,
276, 279.
Revolution, American, 2, 7 ; importance
of town-meeting during, 31 ; Mass. and
Virginia, 66, 77 ; New York, 111, 112;
148 ; forms of colonial government at
time of, 160 ; cause, 164, 165 ; 167-170 ;
211-216; English, 155, 163, 164; the
French, cause, 2, note 168.
Rhode Island, 74 ; colony of, 149, 160 ;
colonial government, 155, 160, 162;
170; 174; 178; ratification, 270.
Roads, 3 ; eminent domain, 4 ; tee high-
ways, 20; 21; 53; 66; 63; reason for
IK>or roads in South Carolina, 74 ; over-
seer of, in Maryland, 77; commis-
sioners in Delaware, 78; cause of
poor roads in United States, 99, 100.
Romans, 34, 76, 76, 170 ; originated con-
tract, 196 ; 233.
Rotation in office, 32, 276-278.
Roxbury, 22.
Royal colonies, tee Colonial govenunent.
Roimymede, 197.
Russell, Beiijamin, 226.
Russia, 6 ; mir, 42 ; purohase of Alaska,
266.
876
INDEX.
BafeffUftrdt agaiiut nnlHridled democracy,
St. Augustine, 146.
St. Lo^B, 84 ; length of mMyor^B term,
121.
Sftlariee of clergymen in Virginia, 60.
Salem, Maaa., seat of Quaiter Seaaiona,
63 ; 152.
Santa F«, 146.
ScandinaviajM, firat appearance in hia-
tory, 36.
School commiaaioner, 73.
School committee, 22, 23; election, 24.
School diatricta, aa incipient townahipa,
74; 87 ; 93, 94.
School-houaea, 3, 18, 87.
School suffrage, 175.
School auperintendent, 23.
School teachera, 3 ; public in Maaeachu-
aetta, 23.
Schoola, 4; early Maaaachuaetta law,
22, 23; in South Carolina, 72, 74;
reaermtion for achoola in public do-
main, 86, 87; in Michigan, 89; in
aouthem atatea, 94; 119; in relation
tocitytaxea,126; in Northweat Terri-
tory, 263.
Scotch highlandera, aettlement in South
Carolina, 72.
Scotch-Iridi, aettlement in South Caro-
lina, 72.
Scotland'a connection with England,
163.
Scrutin d^arrondiuement^ etc., 226.
Sealera of weighta and meaaurea, 23,
24.
Secretary of State, Treaaury, etc., see
State, Treasury, etc.
Sections of townships, 85.
Selectmen, number, duties, 20, 21 ; elec-
tion, 24; duties in connection with
town-meeting, 24; discretionary pow-
ers, 32 ; compared with church-ward-
ens in England, 38; compared with
overseers in New York towns, 79.
Self-government, 19 ; in English manors,
36, 37 ; in early English shires, 50;
difference between New England
township and Virginia parish in re-
spect to, 59-61 ; quotation from Jef-
ferson, 65; British imperial inter-
ference with local, 66; weakened
through size of coimties in South Car-
olina, 74; excellent system of local
in New York, 79; in New York city,
111; lack of, in colonial cities m
America, 113; in early Massachusetts,
154; imder state governments, 179, 180;
lack of in France, 180-182 ; 269.
Semi-royal colony of Massachusetts, 160.
Senate, 73 ; applied to upper house in
state government, 170, 171 ; state
senate compared with lower house,
173; federal, 222, 223; election of
senators, 223; each senator has a
vote, 223; term and qualifications of
senators, 223; impeachment, 229; can-
not serve in electoral college, 233
election of vice-president, 1^, 236
president pro tempore, 236, 237
troatiea and appointmenta, 242, 243;
vacanciea, 242, 243; 248; 261; 266.
Seneschals, 75.
Separation of executive and legislative
departmenta, argumenta for and
against, 176, 176 ; preventa leaderahip,
Sewerage, 20, 116.
Sexton m Virginia pariah, GO.
Sheriff, see Shire-reeve, 60 ; after Nor-
man Conquest appointed by king, 51;
duties, 51 ; in early Massachuaetta, 63;
appointed by governor, 64 ; in modem
Masaachuaetts, 56; in Virghiia, 63, 64;
in South Carolina, 72, 73 ; in Pennayl-
vania, 78; in English borough, 105,
106 ; in Ibigliah citiea, 108; in New
York city, 110-112; 178.
Shire, 49, 50; relation to hundred, "^6;
Engliah shire in relation to American
county, 99.
Shire-motea, 40 ; compoaition, 50 ; func-
tiona, 51.
Shire-reeve, 50.
Shire town, 54 ; comitaied with Virginia
county aeata, 62.
Shoeatnng diatrict, 224.
Shoreditch, the duat destructor, note
116.
Simon de Montfort, see Montf ort.
Slavery, of indentured aervanta, 68;
negro slavery prohibited in Ordinance
of 1787, 90, 91 ; 184 ; slave states in
relation to Houae of Repreaentativea,
221; prohibited in Northweat Ter-
ritory, 263; in constitution, 269 ; 275.
Social contract, theory of, 196.
Social position of early settlers, 18, 59.
Solicitor-general, 249.
South Carolina, €R2; local government in,
71-74 ; settlement, 71 ; parish in, 71,
72 ; double system of local govern-
ment, 73 ; county in, 73, 74 ; 94 ; 160,
159, 236, 257, 269, 270.
Sovereign, English, compared with
President of United States, 246.
Spain, 146, 264, 266.
Spaniards, 146.
Spanish War, 248, 265, 266.
Speaker, of colonial and state l^^islatnrea
228 ; of House of Commons, 228 ; of
House of Representatives, 228 ; suc-
cession to presidency, 237.
SpoUs system, 127, 135, 277.
Staatenbund, 253.
Stamp act congress, 211.
State auditor, 177.
State comptroller, see State auditor.
State, department of, 237, 244, 246-247.
State, secretary of (state government),
177 ; federal government, 237, 244,
245,246.
State treasurer, two in South Carolina,
73 ; 177.
States, in connection with towns, 20, 24,
25, 146-188 ; tranaition from colonial to
atate govemment8,167-172 ; provirional
governments during Revolution, 167-
170 ; governments without governors,
169, 170; reorganization of govern-
INDEX.
377
ments, 170, 171 ; modelled upon Kngliah
fovemment, 171 ; state gOTemments,
73-188; suffrage, 173-175; separa-
tion of deputments, 175-177 ; execu-
tive department, 177-179 ; state gov-
ernment in relation to towns and
counties, 179, 180 ; self-government in,
179-182 ; powers granted and denied,
183-185; judiciary, 185-188; relation
to federal government, 25Sk258 ; de-
nied powers, 255, 256 ; relations among
states, 257, 258; republican form of
government guaranteed, 258; new
states, 265 ; bibliographical notes, 194 ;
also, 149, 155, 157, 164, 171, 176, 184,
186, 188.
States General in France, 168.
States rights, 224, 269.
Statistics, national bureau off 247.
Steward, the lord's, 36. 76.
Street commissioners, 121.
Streets, eminent domain, 4 ; village, in
New England, 18 ; 83, 84 ; 113; city,
117 ; in relation to city tuation, 126.
Strict-constructionist, 273.
Succession to the presidency, order of,
237.
Suffolk, Mass., 53.
Suffrage, made nearly universal in states,
173-175; qualifications, 173, 174; his-
torical reasons for restriction to men,
174 ; woman suffrage, 174, 175 ; in
France, 181 ; suffrage regulated by
states, 183 ; for Federal House of Re-
presentatives, 220, 221.
Supervisors, Board of, in New York, 79 ;
Ulinois and Michigan, 92.
Supreme Court, see Court.
Surveyors of highways, 23, 38, 63, 78, 79,
87.
Surveyors of lumber, 23, 24.
Surveys of public lands, 81-85.
Sweden, 150; relation to Norway, 163.
Tariff, 272, 274.
Taxli8ts,21,27, 28.
Taxation {see Taxes), 1-11 ; comparison
with right of eminent domain, 4 ; es-
sential to government, 7 ; extortion-
ate, 9 ; town, 24 ; methods, 25-30 ;
effect of high rate, 29 ; 39 ; disguised,
86 ; municipal, 126 ; popular right in
thirteen original colomes, 161 ; cause of
disputes between royal governors and
colonists, 162; colonial attitude to-
ward parliamentary, 163; in France,
181 ; Continental Congress, 214, 215,
217, 218; is fundamental sovereign
power, 218 ; Congress has power of,
254; federal, 271-273; dread of fed-
eral, 271 ; bibliographical note, 14, 15.
Taxes, 1-11 ; definition of, 3 ; town, 19, 20;
forced sales, 21 ; imprisonment for fail-
ure to pay, 21 ; method of raising,
25-30 ; church rates in English parish,
37 ; national taxes in England assessed
and collected in local district, 41 ; in
Russia, 42; apportionment of county,
in early Massachusetts, 53 ; in modem
Massachusetts, 55 ; in Virginia parish.
60 ; in Virginia oooniv and colony, 63 ;
in New York towns, 79 ; in dties, 126 ;
in colonial Maryland, 166, 167 ; parlia-
mentary taxes upon the colonies, 164;
direct federal, 221 ; federal, 271-273.
Tuces, assessors of, »ee Assessors.
Taxes, collectors of, tee Collectors.
Tax-payers, 25 ; in South Carolina parish,
71.
Taylor, Z., 239.
Tea-ships in Boston Harbor, 168.
Tennessee, settlement, 81; taxation for
school purposes, 94.
Territorial government, 263-268 ; terri-
tories, 263-265 ; government, 264, 266;
new dependencies, 265-268.
Texas, 263, 264.
Third term, presidential, 242.
Three-fifths Compromise, 221.
TUden, S. J., 236.
Tithing-man, 36, note 38.
Titles of nobility, 183, 267.
Tobacco-viewer in Maryland, 77.
Town, tax, 3 ; origin of name, 35, 36 ;
government of ^d English town, 36,
37 ; representation of, 40, 41 ; change
from town to city, 100-102 ; different
senses in which term is used, 103. See
Township, New England. *
Town clerk, duties, 20, 21 ; election of,
24 ; duties at town-meeting, 24 ; com-
?u-ed with vestry-clerk, Z&\ in New
ork, 79, 111, 112.
Town-house, 18, 19.
Town-meeting, description of, in New
England, 19, 20, 24; advantages of
government, by, 30; as a political
training-school, 31 ; legislative powers,
31 ; oldest form of government, 34 ;
in Greece and Rome, 34; »ee Tunge-
mot, 36; in manors, 36 ; under name
of vestry-meeting, 37 ; reason for hold-
ing annual in spnng, 39 ; in Russia, 42 ;
compared with Vi^finia court-day, 66,
66; with hundred-meeting in Mary-
land, 77 ; in Pennsylvania, 78 ; in New
York compared with New England, 79 ;
Michigan first western state to adopt,
89 ; in Illinois, 91 ; west of Alleghanies,
92; a primary assembly, 98; advan-
tages of, 99 ; in Boston, 100, 101 ; 166 ;
168.
Town officers, 20-24; executive depart-
ment of town government, 32.
Town treasurer, 21 ; election, 24.
Townshend revenue acts, 211, 272.
Township, the New England government
in, 16-SK2; town-meeting, 19; officers
of town, 20-24 ; legal status, 20 ; re-
lation to county, 20; to state, 20;
early school law in Massachusetts, 22 ;
state and county taxes, 25; method
of taxation, 25-30; departments, 31,
32; most complete democracy in the
world, 32; origin, 38, 39, see 110; in
relation to state and nation, 41, 42;
compared with Russian mir, 42 ;
compared with Virginian parieli, 69-
61 ; Jefferson's opinion of, 65 ; 77 ; ad-
vantages of government, 98, 99 ; cor-
378
INDEX.
to
leB;
Pnmndal Congraas, 168, 169; biblio-
gnphkid notes, 46, 47 ; aUo, 31.
Vownihips, lint in ▲meriea, 16 ; origin,
34-43 ; in reiirtioB to pwiah, 37, »•
75 ; relation in Knglend to bon^ods,
76; in Fanneylrama, 78; public do-
main, 81-88 : m west, 8»-96; fint in-
eorpovated in Micb%an, 89 ; in THinoiit,
90 ; ritality of gore nu nent, 91 ; Obio,
Indiana, Iowa, MtMOori, Kebraaka,
Kanw, Minneeota, and Dakota, 91,
92; two grades of townabip go^rem-
ment weat <rf Alleghanies, 92 ; in me-
disral London, 106 ; in nortbem co-
lomal zone, 151 ; diatzicta for prima-
riea,241.
Tbwnahip linea, 82.
Townabip-ooonty qratema, bibliographi-
cal notea, 97 ; aUo^ 72, 79, 81, 85, 89,
90,92.
Tnuupovtation, 117.
Treaaorer, tee Town, County, State.
T^eaaoiy, department of tiie, 237, 244,
2C7.
Traaaory, aecretary of, 237, 2f7 ; Ham-
iltfln aa, 271-273.
Treafy-making power, 242, 245.
Trenton, aeat of Continental Copgrw,
214.
Trial jnatioea, tee Jnatioea.
Tribes, 49, 75.
Tmatees 0^ western townriiips, 92.
Ton, 36.
Tongemot, 36.
Tatuila,267.
Tyler, John, 274.
Under-Tahiation <rf pnqperty, 29.
Uniform mmiicipal acoounting, 137.
Unit of representation, in England, 41 :
in New En^^and, 41 ; un Virginia, 61 ;
in South Carolina, 71; in Maryland,
77 ; in Pennsylvania, 78.
United Colonies, 213.
United States, 3, 5, 6 ; government dur-
ing Revolutionary War, 7 ; 16 ; begin-
ning of public education in, 22; public
bnfldings of, exempt from taxation, 26 ;
average rate of taxation in, 28 ; use of
name township in, 39; use of army in
suppressing insorrecticm, 56; two
characteristic lines of governmental
development, 57 ; movement of popu-
lation, 81 ; beidnnings of city govern-
ment in, 113, 114 ; growth of cities in,
124, 125 ; see the Federal Union.
Utah, woman suffrage in, 174.
Vane, Sir Harry, 199, 200.
Variety, wholesome and instructive, in
development of local instituticms in
the United States, 93, 188.
Verrazano, G, de, 146.
Vestry clerk, 38 ; in Virginia, 59.
Vestry-meethig, 37, 38 ; in Virginia, 59,
60 ; South Carolina, 71.
Vestrymen, in Virginia, 59 ; duties, 60 ;
in ftouth Carolina, 71.
Veto, the ■ayor^a, 1522 ; power of Sna-
liah sovereign, 171, 230 ; governor's, m
American &tate, 171, 172, 177, 178, 179;
TsitD power of Prerident of United
Statea, 230, 232.
Vioe-preaident, preaident <rf aenste, 228 ;
election, 234-237; nomination, 240,
241 ; qualificataona, 241, 242.
Viceroy, 154, 165.
'*Vigiiaiioe committeea " in California,
72.
Vmagea, in Kew Ungland, 18 ; Indian,
36; ancient, 36 ; Ruaaian, 42 ; incOT-
porated, 102 ; rebition to English bor-
oughs, 104, 106.
Vir^B^nia, old Virginia county, 57-67;
srttlement compared with that of New
En^and, 57 ; plantations, 58; chws
dittnctions, 59 ; parish, 69 ; shire
towns, 62; local govenunent in Vir-
ginia and in New England compared,
64-67 ; hondreds, 77 ; 90 ; schools,
94; ooonty boards, 98; colonial Vir-
ginia, 148; separated from the Car-
tdinas, 150; repreaentative govern-
ment, 151, 152 ; compared with Ibsaa-
chuaetta in 1692, 156; 160, 161, 208,
211,224,263,269,270.
Toting as anbatitate for fitting, 174.
War, department of, 237, 244, 248.
** War g o vernors," the, 178.
Ward, 106, 111, 121 ; election districts
for dty council, 129, 136 ; districts
for primaries, 241.
Warrant, for town-meeting, 20, 21, 24.
Wash-houses, public, 119, notes 119-120.
Waahington, D. C, 84, 260.
Washington, G., 67 ; president of Fed-
eral convention, 217 ; presidential
elections, 237, 239, 240; 242; 243; 272 ;
277.
Washington, state of, school district, 93 ;
municipal self-government in, note
120.
Water supply, 101, 116, 117.
Watertown, Mass., 17.
Way-wardens, 38.
Weather bureau, 249.
West Indies, 146.
West Point military academy, 248.
West Virginia, 62.
Wethersfield, Connecticut, 200.
Whigs, 273, 277.
Whi^ey insurrection, 272.
William the Conqueror, 106.
William and Mary, 198.
Windsor, Connecticut, 200.
Wisconsin, 81, 93, 263.
Woman suffrage, tee SofErage.
Wyoming, school districts in, 93; suf-
frage, 174.
Yeomen, 19, 59.
York, Duke of, 150, 151, 158.
York, Pennsylvania, 214.
Zones, into which North America was
dirided by the nmd granta of 1606,
149-151, 210.
3 2044 020 442 414
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